Public administration employees announce strike on Thursday

BEIRUT — In a statement released on Monday, the Association of Public Administration employees announced a strike on Thursday in all public administrations and official institutions.

Th strike is organized in light of the "blatant indifference shown by the government" regarding their rights, mainly those related to salaries, according to the state-run National News Agency.

“In light of the ongoing collapse and the blatant indifference shown by the government — and after the deadline requested by the government to review the legitimate and collective rights of public sector employees has passed — the Association of Public Administration Employees announces a total work stoppage in all public administrations and official institutions on Thursday, Oct. 23."

This coincides with the press conference to be held by the "Gathering of Public Sector Employees’ Unions" to announce a decisive stance on this humiliating reality, at 11:00 a.m. in the Hospitality Building in Dekweneh", the statement reads.

The statement continued: “Enough is enough. Employees can no longer bear humiliation and deprivation. Salaries have become worthless, services are nonexistent, administrations are collapsing, accusations of corruption and negligence abound — and officials just stand by and watch ... The work halt is not a choice or a luxury, it is a cry of anger for our dignity and rights in the face of an authority that has ignored our voices for years. The government should know that any attempt to procrastinate or evade our demands will not pass, and that employees’ patience has reached its limit.”

Finally, the association called on all employees to "fully adhere to the strike and to actively participate in Thursday’s press conference." "Enough humiliation, enough neglect, dignity comes first, and rights are taken, not given", it finally noted.

In July and early August, civil servants held strikes after the government approved a series of salary increases for several categories of senior officials — raises that several public sector unions called "contemptuous," as the salaries of public employees still have not been returned to their pre-2019-crisis levels, when the Lebanese pound was severely devalued.

The issue of public sector pay is one of the thorniest challenges facing the government of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, formed last February. Although salaries have not been adjusted enough to fully offset the collapse of the pound, many believe the Lebanese civil administration has too many employees, lacks efficiency and is too costly.

Before the crisis, public sector wages made up a third of the state budget, when it was around $15 billion. The exact number of civil servants in the public administration is not precisely known, but some sources estimate it at between 200,000 and 300,000 people, including the armed forces.