Heated Debate Expected as Parliament Set to Discuss Employment of EDL Contract Workers
The parliament is scheduled to tackle the recent decision by the joint parliamentary committees to permanently employee Electricite du Liban’s contract workers.
An Nahar newspaper reported that the parliament session on Monday will witness a heated debate over the issue as Change and Reform bloc MPs, led by MP Michel Aoun, prepared a constitutional challenge to contest the decision.
Earlier this month, the parliamentary joint committees tasked with resolving the EDL contract workers’ crisis agreed to include all of them in a selection process for permanent employment.
Energy Minister Jebran Bassil had proposed to allow 700 contract workers to stand for an official exam, out of some 2,500 employees, while the rest would become employees at private companies under a three-month probation period as the company can’t contain all of the employees.
Sources told An Nahar that the full-time employment of all the contract workers disrupts the sectarian balance in the public institution.
Lebanese Forces MP Antoine Zahra told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3) that it is “shameful” to treat the contract workers like this as they have been serving the institution for years under sectarian pretext.
“Those who deserve to become permanent employees don’t exceed 1,700 while the company has more than 3,000 vacant jobs,” Zahra pointed out.
However, the MP said that the competent minister turned the issue into a “personal” dispute.
EDL contract workers have been holding several protests recently demanding the cabinet to approve their full-time employment.
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