Egyptian labor groups demanded a big rise in the minimum wage on Saturday to help them cope with rising prices and some analysts believe they could yet emerge as an influential force in national elections this year and next.
Hundreds of factory and office workers protested outside the Cabinet offices, to press demands for a national minimum monthly wage of 1,200 Egyptian pounds (US$218). It has been 35 pounds since 1984.
Last week Egypt’s Administrative Court ruled that the government must set a minimum wage that takes soaring prices into account, but did not set a figure. Protesters say the government seldom applies the court’s rulings.
“All of Egypt’s workforce has one, unified demand, and that is raising the national minimum wage of all workers to allow them to cope with soaring prices” labor lawyer from the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights Ahmed Ezzat said.
Inflation in Egypt was 12.8 percent in February, down from a peak of 23.6 percent in August 2008 caused by surging world commodity prices.
The government has previously handled isolated strikes swiftly, largely with concessions. But coordinated action could prove more problematic.
“This is the most diverse labor coalition to date, rallying white collar and blue collar workers for a national demand,” labor activist and blogger Hossam Hamalawy said.
The government’s initial response to protests that turn violent has often been been to impose heavy security and then promise higher wages.
“Egypt’s workers are on the brink of explosion. They cannot find even plain bread and do not have real representation in their state unions,” textile worker Kamal Fayoumy said.
Some political analysts say the protests could give birth to alliances with political parties ahead of parliamentary elections this year and presidential elections next year.
“This protest is the first step to create a link among political reform movements and their social reform counterparts, an alliance that could make the labor movement in the next months a new political power that could play a vital role in elections,” political analyst and Muslim Brotherhood member Mohamed Abdel Qoudous said.
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