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Public sector employees have renewed their push for a salary review and announced a two-day warning strike on September 5 and 6. This Is Beirut looks back at the sporadic strikes that the public sector has been organizing since 2019.
The League of Civil Employees has announced a two-day warning strike on September 5 and 6, accusing the government of stalling the approval of the salary review proposal. This is particularly frustrating as the proposal was reviewed by the Civil Service Council and the Ministry of Finance before being submitted to the Prime Minister’s office by the end of July.
In a statement, the League asserts that “the ideal solution to restore balance in the public sector is to approve this project,” emphasizing that certain issues should be amended by the Council of Ministers without further review. These issues include raising salaries, setting working hours from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM, taking into account the number of annual workdays for each civil service category when preparing the project, restoring salaries to their pre-crisis purchasing power by January 1, 2027, implementing gradual salary adjustments starting in early 2025, paying at least 50% of salaries’ pre-crisis value in dollars, revising family allowances and increasing transportation subsidies.
The League dismissed the government’s proposal to grant four additional salaries in two installments, arguing that it fails to meet “the employees’ current expectations.” It warned the government against dismissing the demands of public administration personnel in order to avoid a potential escalation.
The League reiterated its call for “the government to enhance working conditions in public administrations, addressing both infrastructure and energy needs, and to ensure all necessary resources are provided to enhance work efficiency.”
Sporadic Strikes
Since the beginning of the 2019 economic crisis, civil sector employees have held intermittent strikes, their frequency rising in response to economic and political changes. These strikes are driven by demands for salary increases, improved working conditions and better public services. The economic crisis has caused substantial difficulties for civil employees, significantly affecting their salaries and living conditions over the years.
The increase in civil servant protests since 2019 has had a significant impact on the Lebanese economy, particularly on public finances. These strikes have led to decreased productivity in public services and a loss of revenue for the government. According to a study conducted by the Ministry of Labor, the cost of these disruptions on Lebanon is $400,000 per day.
Authorities have struggled to address civil servants’ demands effectively due to poor management and financial and political constraints. Negotiations have been prolonged, complex and largely ineffective. Despite frequent promises of salary increases and better working conditions, the government has consistently failed to deliver on these commitments.
To resolve the crisis, deep structural reforms are essential along with better public financial management and improved governance. Additionally, achieving political stability is critical to enabling meaningful economic and social progress.
While the international community has called for public sector reforms for years, progress has been painfully slow. The public sector remains plagued by corruption, resource shortages and, most critically, ineffective management.
