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The Ogero Employees’ Union, representing Lebanon’s public provider of fixed telephony and Internet, staged a warning strike on Monday. During a sit-in outside the Ministry of Telecommunications, the union warned that if their demands were not met, employees would initiate an indefinite strike. This marks the fifteenth strike in approximately a year.
The union advocates for wage adjustments that reflect the current economic conditions and condemns the dire working conditions employees face. Key demands include an increase in salaries and benefits and the adjustment of these benefits according to the new dollar exchange rate. Currently, due to the devaluation of the Lebanese pound, salaries have shrunk to a fraction of their pre-crisis value.
Émilie Nassar, president of the Ogero Employees’ Union, told This is Beirut that despite numerous appeals for improvements, no positive measures have been taken on behalf of Ogero. Consequently, the union organized this sit-in to make its demands heard. “We’ve been voicing the same demands for over a year,” she said, questioning, “How much longer must we wait?” Despite ongoing negotiations, there has been no progress. “We are simply seeking our rights for the work we perform,” she added.
Ms. Nassar emphasized that Ogero employees are refraining from escalating the situation until all other avenues have been explored. She pointed out that the sit-in was primarily to protest the non-implementation of decrees and decisions affecting Ogero employees, as well as the sporadic allocation of funds for network maintenance.
Furthermore, she underlined that employees are deeply concerned about the future of both the sector and Ogero itself. She called on “all relevant parties to swiftly address the employees’ demands, without involving them in administrative matters that are beyond their control.” Ms. Nassar affirmed that Ogero employees are dedicated to their work and should not be burdened with unnecessary administrative routines.
The union president cautioned that “if employees are compelled to strike, it will disrupt operations and prevent repairs to Internet network failures.”
It is noteworthy that in the event of such a strike, Ogero’s action would impact Internet services nationwide, as the operator provides data to all Internet Service Providers (ISPs).
For his part, the caretaker Minister of Telecommunications, Johnny Corm, assured This is Beirut that he was closely following the matter and would spare no effort to resolve the issue. He disclosed that he had received 300 billion Lebanese pounds from the Ministry of Finance and is anticipating an additional 8 million dollars by the end of this week or early next week. He also requested a meeting with the Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berry, to further discuss the ongoing crisis.
