63 temporary employees at Helwan University filed an administrative report (number 5067) at Helwan police station, after their colleague, Hamed Ahmed, suffered a nervous shock and was transferred to hospital, following what they described as “deception” by the university administration to force him to sign a new contract turning him into a daily wage worker without any employment rights.
Several colleagues reported that employee Hamed Ahmed, who has worked under a temporary automatically-renewed contract for years, was summoned by the university’s secretary-general, Major General Mohamed Abu Shaqqa, to sign a new contract; however, he refused before amending certain clauses which would change his employment status from a permanent employee under a temporary contract to a daily wage worker with no social benefits or rights.
They added that the secretary-general promised Ahmed he would amend those clauses immediately after signing the contract, but later went back on his promise upon signing, telling him: “I won’t change anything… and I don’t take back my decisions,” which caused Ahmed to suffer severe convulsions, lose consciousness, and be rushed to Al-Nasr Hospital affiliated with the Health Insurance Authority in Helwan.
One of the employees who filed the report indicated that this was not an isolated incident, pointing out that the university administration has been exerting heavy pressure on temporary employees for months to force them to sign new contracts ending their current status and stripping them of their employment rights such as fixed wages and social insurance.
For his part, Hamed Ahmed, after leaving the hospital and heading home for care, told “Mada Masr” that he had been deceived, and that the administration exploited its authority through intimidation, coercion, and fraud to push through these contracts.
Ahmed was among a group of about 300 employees who have worked at Helwan University for over 13 years, and who previously rejected, in a report published by “Mada Masr” three months ago, the administration’s demand to force them into daily wage contracts, demanding instead to be appointed to permanent positions or at least to retain their current rights.
The Committee for Justice (CFJ) strongly condemns the incident and firmly rejects the “twisted” methods used by Helwan University’s administration to force temporary employees to sign new contracts that strip them of their rights. The committee calls for the immediate cancellation of the contract signed with Hamed Ahmed, confirming that it was signed under unacceptable pressure and coercion.
The CFJ stresses the necessity of the university administration entering serious and transparent negotiations with temporary employees to reach fair contractual terms that preserve their rights and guarantee job stability, without discrimination or reduction of their current status, under which they have worked for many years under automatically renewed contracts.
