The workers of Misr Amreya Spinning and Weaving Company in Alexandria, numbering 1,000, continue their strike, which began on July 30, in protest against what they described as “manipulation in applying the minimum wage,” and failure to account for job hierarchy. They are demanding the dismissal of the company’s CEO and managing director, Ahmed Amr Ragab, along with his advisers, due to their “severe intransigence against the workers.”
The workers also demanded the payment of overdue bonuses, calculation of Saturday overtime based on the full salary rather than the basic wage, an increase in the production incentive, and an end to being forced to give up their annual leave balances.
The workers continue their strike for the fifteenth day, despite facing pressure and security intimidation. The National Security Agency in Alexandria summoned five workers for questioning regarding the strike, and a national security officer who met with the workers tried to pressure them to end it.
On August 11, the company’s workers rejected an offer from the management of Banque Misr, which owns the company, to increase the “shift allowance” by 200 pounds—raising it to 600 pounds per month—and provide a fully equipped ambulance, in exchange for ending their 13-day strike. The workers described the offer as “mocking them” and reaffirmed their commitment to their demands.
On the same day, the company’s CEO and managing director, Ahmed Amr Ragab, submitted his resignation to the board of directors of Banque Misr, the owner of the company, after 13 days of workers’ strike, under pressure from the ongoing action.
CFJ affirms its solidarity with the workers of Misr Amreya Spinning and Weaving Company in Alexandria and expresses deep concern over the repeated violations they are facing. It calls on the relevant authorities to put an end to the exploitation of these workers and to take urgent steps to ensure a safe and fair working environment, including providing legal safeguards and opening an independent investigation into the complaints filed by the workers.
CFJ also stresses that the right to decent work is a constitutional and human right that cannot be compromised, and that the continued deprivation of this group of their basic rights constitutes a grave violation requiring the intervention of supervisory and executive authorities to protect workers’ rights and guarantee their access to international labor standards.
