SCC Strike Goes Ahead for 2nd Week, Vows New Escalatory Measures

The Syndicate Coordination Committee went ahead with its open ended-strike for the second week in a row by holding a sit-in near the Labor Ministry in Beirut's Shiyah district and announcing of the implementation of new escalatory measures starting Monday.

“We will implement new escalating measures starting Monday, in particular, near private schools,” head of the private school teachers association Nehme Mahfoud told protesters.

He announced that Saturday's sit-in will be held near the mechanical inspection in Dekwaneh at 8:00 a.m.

The SCC, a coalition of private and public school teachers and public sector employees, has been staging protests for the last 11 days near public institutions to protest the cabinet's failure to refer the new wage scale to the parliament.

Mahfoud lashed out at Prime Minister Najib Miqati and Finance Minister Mohammed al-Safadi, stressing that protesters will not yield nor back down.

“We will not leave the street until the salary scale is referred,” the SCC official reiterated.

The committee intends to hold a general strike on Wednesday to coincide with a cabinet session at the Grand Serail.

Future television later reported that public and private school teachers and civil servants held a sit-in near the house of Miqati in Tripoli.

The cabinet approved the wage scale last year but has been stalling in finding sources to fund it, leading to growing differences with the SCC, which has been accusing it of negligence.

However, the government argues that it is delaying the decision on the funding in an attempt to thoroughly discuss plans to boost the treasury's revenue to cover the expenses of the salaries boost.

The state treasury will have more than $1.2 billion to cover over the presence of 180,000 public sector employees including military personnel.