Nahhas Asks GLC, Economic Committees for 'Final Answer' on Wage Plan

A meeting for the price index committee called by Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas failed to reach an agreement on a wage hike plan on Wednesday.

Along with Nahhas, the four-hour meeting at the labor ministry building was attended by the representatives of the Economic Committees, the General Labor Confederation, the Syndical Coordination Committee and the Central Administration of Statistics.

Briefing reporters after the fruitless talks, Nahhas said another meeting will be held on Thursday during which the GLC and the Economic Committees, a grouping of business owners, are supposed to submit a “final answer concerning their decision on the issue of wage rectification.”

“It would be a good thing if their answer allowed us to reach a legitimate solution, but we will not break the law should they insist that the government provide cover for some firms,” Nahhas stressed.

For his part, GLC chief Ghassan Ghosn told reporters after the meeting that “the necessary legal framework must be created for the Baabda consensual agreement” between the GLC and the Economic Committees, which was brokered by Premier Najib Miqati.

“We hope the wage rectification plan will be approved in the next cabinet session,” Ghosn added.

Meanwhile, Economic Committees representative Nicolas Shammas reiterated the group’s insistence on the implementation of the Baabda agreement.

But Nehme Mahfoud, the head of the private schools teachers association, which has recently declared that it represents 50 percent of the regular workforce in Lebanon, said the SCC was “not concerned with the Baabda agreement.”

On Sunday, the Syndical Coordination Committee threatened to stage fresh strikes and demonstrations, stressing that “no one can marginalize” it in the ongoing debate over wage rectification.

“The Syndical Coordination Committee is an essential component of the price index committee and it is a major party in social dialogue and negotiation over the issue of salaries,” the SCC said.

The SCC “represents a large segment of employees and teachers in the public and private sectors, and therefore it is directly concerned with the issue,” it noted.

“The deliberate and recurrent exclusion of the SCC from dialogue makes the fate of the so-called consensual agreement similar to the previous agreements, being the product of an illegitimate dialogue,” the SCC added, slamming talks between Miqati, the GLC and the Economic Committees as “non-representative and undemocratic.”

It said the aim of such “deliberate exclusion” was to “infringe on the rights of workers, employees and teachers,” vowing to “never allow that, no matter the sacrifices.”

The SCC stressed that transportation allowance must be added to the basic salary, calling for a “dialogue that engages all parties without exception, in order to rectify wages in a manner that preserves the rights of workers and employees.”

Nahhas’ call for Wednesday’s meeting “surprised” the parties involved in the debate over wage hike, An Nahar newspaper reported.

The committee is tasked with reviewing the cost of living data to determine whether the demand for higher minimum wage is valid.

Head of Lebanese Industrialists Association Jack Sarraf told An Nahar on Wednesday that “employers and employees hold onto the agreement between the production parties.”

Asked about the price index committee’s scheduled meeting, he expressed optimism “as long as the minister aims at discussing the legal terms of the deal held between the General Labor Confederation and the Economic Committees.”

Miqati sponsored a meeting last month at the Baabda Palace between the GLC and the Economic Committees that agreed to set the minimum wage at LL675,000 – a sum that excludes the transportation allowance.

For his part, President Michel Suleiman stressed the importance of resolving the wage hike dispute as soon as possible in accordance with the Shura Council’s verdict and in a manner that satisfies both the employers and employees.

Suleiman informed ministers during Tuesday’s cabinet session that the wages issue will be included in the agenda of the government meeting on Monday.

According to As Safir newspaper published on Wednesday, the solution is limited to two options, either the cabinet agrees to Nahhas’ new proposal without referring to the transportation allowance -- if the Shura Council approves it -- or the cabinet approves the deal between the two production parties after legalizing it.

The new proposal of Nahhas, who is loyal to Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun, suggests a 100 percent increase on the first bracket under LL1 million and 25 percent on the second bracket above LL1 million. But LL200,000 will be deducted from the wages due to the raise approved by the government in 2008, which indicates that the new minimum wage will be LL800,000.

Sources close to change and reform parliamentary bloc headed by Aoun told As Safir that the FPM chief is seeking common grounds between the production parties and Nahhas in a way that preserves the employees’ rights in having a transportation allowance.

On Monday, a joint delegation from the GLC and the Economic Committees held separate meetings with Aoun and Miqati in order to find a solution to the wage hike dispute.