Minister of Manpower Mohamed al-Boraie has decided to halt the payment of subsidies to trade unions, regularly used in the past by the regime of ex-President Hosni Mubarak to gather votes in the elections.
Al-Boraie also decided to stop automatic trade union membership fee deductions from workers' salaries, since membership is voluntary.
In statements to the press on Wednesday, al-Boraie said his ministry will not monitor the accounts of trade unions, pointing out that it plays no supervisory role over those trade unions.
Kamal Abbas, general coordinator for the Center for Trade Union and Worker's Services, said the Egyptian Federation for Trade Unions (EFTU) and general trade unions received LE78 million in annual subsidies from the Manpower Ministry.
The regime of ousted President Mubarak used the EFTU to serve its own ends, especially since the formerly-ruling National Democratic Party controlled trade union elections.
