The House of Representatives will vote on the Contractor’s Compensation Act in a plenary session on Monday 13 March. Contractors have been urging the state to hasten the bill — which will compensate suppliers and contractors for FX losses incurred after the EGP float — since it was first proposed in December, claiming that the delay has been straining the sector, whose material costs have increased exponentially since November.

Also on the legislative agenda next week: The House of Representatives’ Manpower Committee will begin discussing the Labor Act on Monday, according to Al Borsa. The bill is geared more towards securing workers’ financial and social rights, MPs tell Al Mal, with clauses that preserve the eight-hour workday, will force private sector companies to institute an annual raise of at least 7%, and enshrine workers’ right to strike. The legislation also establishes a National Wages Council that is expected to set new guidelines for pensions and minimum wage among other things. Workers are not happy claiming that the bill further restricts workers’ rights to strike by revoking strike rights for workers in transport, pharma, and food industries.
The House general assembly also plans to vote on the Natural Gas Act by the end of March.