Workers from the privatized Steam Boilers Company, the Ideal Company and the Kouta Steel Company staged protests outside the presidential palace and the cabinet building on Wednesday, demanding the government buy the companies back and rehire laid off workers.
“The former regime sold our company for peanuts 12 years ago and 1,114 workers were laid off,” said Mostafa Fouad, a former worker from Steam Boilers who called on President Mohamed Morsy to reinstate him.
“The new management took our profit shares and bonuses,” said Sami Saeed, an Ideal worker.
Kouta Steel employees said the new owner of the company was arrested several times for bounced checks, and asked that the government give them back their jobs.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
