World Courant
Staff are demanding wage will increase as Egypt struggles with a extreme financial disaster and excessive inflation.
BBC employees in Egypt’s capital Cairo are organizing a three-day strike to protest what they are saying is unequal pay in comparison with colleagues in different nations within the area, as Egypt grapples with a extreme financial disaster.
“BBC workers in Cairo are on a three-day strike, from July 17 to 19, to protest their low salaries and deteriorating residing circumstances,” learn an announcement launched Monday by Khaled el-Balshy, head of the Egyptian Syndicate of journalists and the spokesperson for the strikers. “BBC journalists in Cairo additionally categorical deep concern over what they see as systematic discrimination in opposition to administration in London over cost insurance policies.”
The strike comes after an earlier strike on June 14 over unequal pay failed, the union stated.
Since March 2022, learn the assertion, BBC workers wages have misplaced almost half of their worth as a result of devaluation of the Egyptian pound.
Egypt is going through an financial disaster with a couple of third of its 105 million inhabitants residing in poverty, in accordance with authorities figures. Annual inflation reached 36.8 p.c in June, in comparison with 33.7 p.c within the earlier month, in accordance with knowledge from the state-run Central Company for Mobilization and Statistics.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine dealt one other blow to the nation’s financial system, which is the world’s largest importer of wheat, with greater than half coming from Russia and a major share from Ukraine. As in the remainder of the world, the battle has pushed up costs in lots of sectors in Egypt, together with meals and medical providers.
El-Balshy stated within the assertion that the BBC’s crew in Cairo has repeatedly requested their administration to regulate their salaries to the nation’s financial realities. The union chief additionally stated strikers may think about authorized motion and prolong the strike if their calls for should not met.
“However our calls for have been ignored or meager raises have been supplied,” the assertion learn, including that comparable requests have been granted following protests from workers at different businesses.
In response to the strike, the BBC stated it acknowledged that Egypt’s financial scenario has had an influence on its workers.
“We’re growing salaries by 27 p.c between March and July this yr to mitigate the excessive inflation within the nation,” the broadcaster informed Al Jazeera through e-mail.
“We’re dissatisfied that workers have taken strike motion and are persevering with to interact with them to discover a resolution whereas appearing inside our market rewards coverage which is constantly utilized by the BBC worldwide,” it added.
The editor of the BBC’s Cairo bureau, Ashraf Madbouli, declined to remark and referred to el-Balshy for questions.
BBC Cairo workers on strike for 3 days over unequal pay | Information
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