Exploitation of Workers in Egypt - Essay Example

Exploitation of Workers in Egypt Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Name Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Course Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Lecturer Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Date Employees are prone to exploitation from their employers and the grieving thought of being fired and unemployed has led to the workers’ toleration of the harsh treatment. Egyptians’ employees are not exception of this fate. There are various forms of exploitation which include: giving insufficient credit to the employees, employers keeping all the profits to themselves, delay of salaries and wages, unfair treatment, overloading with labor, working overtime with no payment, child labor (Maye 2004). However, the employees will only save themselves through understanding this exploitation, and therefore, raise their voice, talk to attorney or Human Resource or even quit the job if necessary. Egypt has played a great role in the history of employees (Joel 2001). Actually, the first documented strike in the world took place in the Egypt, a three-day pay grievance by builders specifically those who were involved in the building of pyramids (Joel & Zachary 1987). The situation for employees in Egypt at present sadly bears much similarity to the past conflict between the government and Egyptian employees. Changes have not been greatly significant at present; though earlier on the government had an iron grip on leadership and power, callously punished dissent, and played a major role in a scheme that kept workers poor and powerless (Marsh 1997). Public-sector employees have been spearheading the protests and strikes since 1971, though the private-sector comprises 40 percent of the total participation in recent years. Privatization taking place in Egypt has also led to strikes as most employees fear loss of jobs and the unwilling of the private investors to pay better benefits, for example, dividends on shares, contribution to retirement kitty or funds (Ragui 2006). However, there is hope for the Egyptians employees as new government and workers movements are taking root. For instance, municipal real estate tax collector did stage a country wide strike which lasted for 12 days; more than 10,000 people staged a demonstration outside the Prime Minister office. The success of this strike motivated Egypt’s education administrator and postal workers’ to mobilize as well. Successful employees’ movements and trade unions have been great inspiration for the Egyptians. The Egyptians’ employees have continued to raise their voice in the street for government rule of law, transparency and democratic reforms (Joel & Zachary 1987). However, recent development has seen the country’s move to a new era of government changes and therefore, the workers’ rights and growth of unions is most likely to be seen. The voices of these employees will then be heard leading to better wages and payment, improvement of working conditions. The examination of the labor issues and the protests staged by the employees would open new windows in Egypt. It is obvious that the government needs to protect the employees to safeguard the economic reforms and growth. Otherwise, it may lead to poor quality of products, for example. A textile company is said to have undergone financial loss recently when it exported poor quality yarn to Spain which was then returned. The blame was entirely on the management as it could heed to the grievances of the employees resulting to poor work and finally pitiable products (Joel 2001). History has it that the employees have established various ways to confront exploitation in their working places (Joel & Zachary 1987). Marsha (1997) noted that Trade Unions have been formed before the gain of independent to present days. This is because the employees could not rely on the employers or management to correctly protect their rights. They found out there were substitute for their right to bargain collectively with the management and their right to organize and join unions. For example, in the early 1945s, the trade unions and workers actively participated in the waves of social protest and nationalist. They mainly pressed for more wages and various issues that they had at their workplace (Joel 2001). However, due to the weakness of these movements, most of the created federations were dissolved. In recent years, protests have erupted and are described as the largest ever seen social movements in Egypt (Ragui 2006). Over 1.7 million employees have been involved in more than 1800 strikes and other different forms of protests. According to Centre for Trade Union and Worker Services (2008), during the 2007 protests and strikes spread from clothing and textile industry to oil workers, materials and transport workers, food processing and barkers workers, Cairo underground Metro workers and many others. The protests broadened to capture the civil servants and the white collar employees. However, these labors action had been mainly amplified politically, as it coincided with a campaign which was organized by the Kifaya (an Egyptian name for Enough), an Egyptian movement formed for change-and other major groups comprised mostly of the middle class in the urban and other intellectual workers. However, only weak links are observed between the oppositional forces, demonstrators and employees movement. What is more, Kifaya has been on the decrease since 2006, due to internal division, repression, and its lack of capacity to connect the people further than the educated and urban middle classes (Ragui 2006). The employees have been successful to some extent in confronting the exploitation. The December 2007 strike, carried out by the municipal tax collectors led to the formation of a trade union which was independent of the government and also they were able to win their economic demands. The weakness of the federation created may be attributed to the fact that the government has controlled the federation, painting the federation as an arm of the government. This problem meant that the employees lacked representation despite the economic difficulties the country is facing. Fear has, however, caught up the employees in Egypt. These has been instilled through the massive force, torture, and arresting of the demonstrating and protesting employees by security forces. For example, reports given by the U.S department, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (2007), in the December strike, the committee which was comprised of five elected member were arrested and forced by the government to reach agreements behind the backs of their fellow employees. The fear of arrest has, therefore, been a major drawback of the employees’ confrontation of exploitation (Joel 2001). Most of the Law on legalization of strikes is not designed to protect the employees’ right to strike. Actually, procedures followed by the workers to prepare protests and strikes are cumbersome and some are forbidden. The conditions given are so restrictive that the employees do not actually have a right to strike. The use of state security to deter employees’ rights has been also another hindrance to protests. It has also increased fear among the striking workers (Freedom House 2008). According to Human Rights Watch (2006), the government view strikes and protests as high level of public order violations. The state has been used even incases where the pretext of a justifiable security purpose. Centre for Trade Unions and Workers (2008) observed that in lower-profile demonstrations, the forces have been active, for instance in the strike that took place in January 2008, the striking employees at Trust weaving Industries, were demanded to end the strike by the security or otherwise they would be charged of sabotaging the industries machines. This led to the strike ending inconclusively. Manipulation of the trade unions election has undermined the potential candidates and has instilled fear in them. The government has played a major role in this as it mainly determines the outcome of these elections so as to control the unions and the workers (Maye 2004) To worsen the situation, the aspiring candidates must forego a day’s job in order to obtain the nomination document and the nomination period given is very short and this has discouraged most people. However, changes of governance has led to promising changes as the government has already to be forced to negotiate and actually fulfilled the demands of the employees. There is need to motivate the employees in Egypt as it will enhance their reproductively resulting to growth of the economy. The Egypt’s government should honor the obligation as a member of International Labor Organization to employees’ rights, to reconsider all its policies that deprive employees and their families, to encourage the increase of more unions (Joel 2001). Maye (2004) concluded that the government should support the employees’ movements as they offer an opportunity to hear out the peoples’ voice and therefore, implement economic changes. This calls for the reforms of the labor and respect to the labor standards. In the private sector, according to Eberhard (2011), the employers will only increase the employees’ productivity if only the social benefits and health insurance are provided though this is only observed mainly in the best-performing firms. As observed by the American Chamber of Commerce (2005), lack of safety and health equipment, overtime work with no pay will decline employees’ productivity. At present, positive changes are already underway to allow the employees’ voice to be heard. According to Joel (2001), in a period of about one year, 28 governorates, which have up to 40,000 employees, carried a local election to elect their representative committee which is said to be democratic, transparent. The elected representatives went ahead to elect national leaders in front of the press and leaders. Political forces have also issued support for the employees though the workers are careful not to have linked to the political forces as most people do not have confidence with the already existing political forces. In actual fact, the political forces during the employees’ strike, steal the moments to put their own agenda first, create their own platforms and they try to impose these on the striking employees. The non-governmental organizations are also taking interest in the employees’ protests and are trying to link up with the employees to help them voice their grievances. Positive changes have been seen when the employees have voiced their grievances through the trade unions. A good example of this, is when the textile workers through their union called General Union of Textile, had a successful strike. The strike caught the attention of the Minister of Manpower and Migration who called upon the employers to pay the employees all the bonuses tat they were entitled to (Maye 2004). This was followed by negotiations involving the ministry, the management and union which eventually led to the payment of the bonuses. Therefore, treatment of the workers should be well taken care of to increase productivity. In conclusion, employees’ protests of all kinds have been on the rise since 2000, and more dramatic from 2004. The movements have been motivated by the increase of impoverishment of a very large numbers of Egyptians’ employees as the neoliberal plan advances. More actions are also being seen from the private sectors, which initially had very few local trade unions. The textile employees are generally the most active in the protest movement, alongside the municipal tax collectors. Food processing, building material and construction employees have also been prominent. The Egyptian government is facing a crisis, as its neoliberal policies have not been full been fulfilled. However, the political changes that have been recently observed are promising to give hopes to the employees and workers of various industries. The workers movements are great platforms for the employees to offer their grievances to the government to listen to their voice of the people and therefore, implement the long awaited economic and political policy changes. Failure to do so will continue to threaten the Egyptian’s regional, security, prosperity and internal security influence. The privatized firms demonstrate that employees have acceptable, serious concerns about employees’ rights to unionize and collectively bargain in the emerging private sector. The labor laws should be revised to suit the employees’ demands. This simply means that the employees will obtain better wages, good working condition, social services and amenities, overtime with payments, lack of child labor, and share of dividends and respect of the rights of the employees by both the government and employers. REFERENCES Joel, B and Zachary, L. 1987, Workers on the Nile: Nationalism, Communism, Islam, and the Egyptian Working Class, Princeton: Princeton University Press. Ragui, A, 2006, “Labor Supply, Employment, and Unemployment in the Egyptian Economy 1988-2006,” Cairo: American University in Cairo Press Joel, B, 2001, Workers and Peasants in the Modern Middle East, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Marsha, P, 1997, Labor and the State in Egypt: Workers, Unions, and Economic Restructuring, 1952-1996, New York: Columbia University Press. Center for Trade Union and Worker Services, 2008, “Declaration of Principles: The Legislative Framework of Trade Union and Labor Action: Criteria for Suggested Amendment,” Eberhard, K, 2001, A Grand Delusion: Democracy and Economic Reform in Egypt, London: Columbia University Press American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, Egypt Watch Bulletin, September 15, 2005 available at www.amcham.org.eg/BSAC/WatchBulletin/Issues/sep1505.asp. Maye, K, 2004, Egyptian Politics: The Dynamics of Authoritarian Rule, Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner press Freedom House, “Freedom of Association under Threat—Egypt,” November 21 2008, UNHCR Refworld, available at www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/492a751728.html. Human Rights Watch, “Egypt: Police Assault Demonstrators, Journalists,” May 11, 2006 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, 2007, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Egypt, available at www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100594.htm. Read More