ECESR Acquires Compensation Ruling for Arbitrarily Discharged Temporary Worker
The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) acquired a new ruling for Ahmed Hassanin against a restaurant in Mokattam area where he worked from the beginning of January 2010 for 80 pounds a day, or 2400 pounds a month. He was discharged after three years of uninterrupted employment.
The case dated back to 30 October 2012. While the worker was doing his work inside the restaurant, preparing Falafel on the mincing machine, he received a work injury in his left hand because the machine is old and dysfunctional. The incident resulted in deep cuts in his left hand, losing the tips of two fingers on his left hand, chronic diabetes, and high levels of pyogenic infection that is considered life-threatening. These conditions require ongoing medical attention.
The worker was immediately sent to Al-Hussein University Hospital where he undergone an operation to clean the injuries and stop the massive bleeding resulting from the deep wounds he received. After that, the restaurant owner informed him that he does not need him anymore and that he was discharged despite his injury. When the plaintiff restored his ability to move he went to the restaurant owner to demand getting back to work and receiving his financial dues, but the owner refused reemploying him and did not pay his financial dues.
The case was heard in Full Circuit 17 Workers of the South Cairo Workers Court. The case was referred to the Ministry of Justice Experts Office that proved the work relation and that the restaurant owner arbitrarily discharged the worker. In the session dated 22 April 2015, the court ruled to force the restaurant to pay the worker 4800 pounds for failing to inform the worker, in addition to 14,400 pounds in compensation.
The ruling is important because it states that the arbitrarily discharged worker is liable for compensation if the work relation was ongoing for more than 6 months even in the lack of employment contract. Labor Law number 12 of 2003 gave the worker alone the right to prove the work relation in case there was no contract. This results in more warranties for millions of daily paid workers who are in need of legal protection to preserve their rights.
