Over 10,000 workers at state-owned textile factories in Egypt’s industrial city Mahalla struck and staged a sit-in on Monday of this week.
They are demanding the payment of promised bonuses and the new government sanctioned monthly minimum wage of £105. The monthly wage of thousands of Mahalla workers is £44.
Workers also called for the sacking of Fouad Abdel-Alim, the boss of the firm that oversees all state-owned textile factories.
They face a state clampdown on protests. The military regime has declared that a new presidential election will be held before April. Left nationalist Hamdeen Sabahi has announced he will stand.
Sabahi stood for president in 2012 in the first election after the fall of former dictator Hosni Mubarak.
He came third behind the eventual winner, Mohamed Mursi, and Ahmed Shafiq, who was prime minister under Mubarak.
The newly promoted Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, leader of the present regime, is expected to stand.
Unions have called a general strike
Interview with a member of French revolutionary socialist group Autonomie de Classe
The real violence is coming from the racist thugs in uniforms
