Posted by John, January 31st, 2011 - under Revolution, Unions.

Tags: Egypt, General strike

The following press release comes via the Trade Union Council, the peak British trade union body. It says that Egyptian workers have formed a mass trade union Federation, setting up workplace committees and are setting the date for a general strike. If this is true and the group has the support of significant sections of the Egyptian working class it is an incredibly important development, of historic significance.

If the general strike is called and well supported, Mubarak is gone. If workplace committees are set up and begin running society the revolution is deepening and maturing.

Update 10.30 pm Monday night Sydney time. BBC is reporting that protesters and unions have called an indefinite general strike from Tuesday 1 February, presumably to coincide with the million people march that day and to drive the nail into the coffin of the dictator and his regime.

If this has substantial working class support, the revolution is moving sharply to the left.

The workplace committees are the first stage in new structures of power to challenge the old capitalist institutions.

A democratic and socialist Egypt could be unfolding before us. Victory to the Egyptian working class.



John

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Egyptian workers form new union

The TUC has received the following press release from the independent trade union organisation CTUWS, whose website has been blocked by the Egyptian government as part of the repression of dissent in Egypt.

Press Release

Date: Sunday, 30 January 2011

Today, representatives of the Egyptian labor movement, made up of the independent Egyptian trade unions of workers in real estate tax collection, the retirees, the technical health professionals and representatives of the important industrial areas in Egypt: Helwan, Mahalla al-Kubra, the tenth of Ramadan city, Sadat City and workers from the various industrial and economic sectors such as: garment & textiles, metals industry, pharmaceuticals, chemical industry, government employees, iron and steel, automotive, etc agreed to hold a press conference at 3:30pm this afternoon in Tahrir Square next to Omar Effendi Company store in downtown Cairo to announce the organization of the new Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions and to announce the formation of committees in all factories and enterprises to protect, defend them and to set a date for a general strike. And to emphasize that the labor movement is in the heart and soul of the Egyptian Peoples’ revolution and its emphasis on the support for the six requirements as demanded by the Egyptian People’s Revolution. To emphasize the economic and democratic demands voiced by the independent labor movement through thousands of strikes, sit-ins and protests by Egyptian workers in the past years.

Translation of original in Arabic into English

Readers might also like to look at Arab democracy threatens Israel and the US, Strike to bring Mubarak down and Egypt: the revolution has begun.