Cabinet to Approve Civil Servants' Salary Hike on Wednesday

The cabinet will approve a salary hike for public sector employees during a session on Wednesday, Prime Minister Najib Miqati said amid a threat by the Syndicate Coordination Committee to hold a strike the day before.

The salary increase will come in accordance with an agreement reached by the members of the ministerial committee headed by Miqati, An Nahar newspaper said.

Although the prime minister did not divulge any information on how the government plans to boost the treasury’s revenue to cover the expenses of salaries, informed sources told al-Liwaa daily the cabinet is planning during the same session to increase taxes on land parcels and sea properties.

The SCC, a coalition of private and public school teachers and public sector employees, has staged several strikes in the past months to pressure the government into adopting the new wages scale.

The government decided to increase the salaries of the teachers after a wage raise was granted to the private sector in January.

Another important item on the cabinet agenda is the renewal of exclusivity of Lebanon’s flag carrier Middle East Airlines.