Health Care Workers in Kirkuk Hold A Strike

In August 3, 2005 the health care workers in the hospital and medical centers in Kirkuk (270km to the north of Baghdad) and its suburban cities have held a general strike against the resolution passed by the ministry of health (numbered 232971 in July 6, 2005) to decrease the pay of the employees.

The strike began at 9:00 am local time and lasted for 2 hours after the ministry officials have received the workers' demands and promised that they will pass them on to the minister of health.

In a TV interview in Kirkuk (Sherkow Mohammed Rahim) a health care worker said "our demands are not only the abolishment of this resolution but also include providing means of transportation, epidemic compensation pay, housing and accommodations for the employees" he also vowed that they will hold an open strike next Sunday unless their demands will be met.

And below is the list of these demands:

"After two and half years of the downfall of the former regime, we the health care workers who are considered the most important part of the society do not enjoy our most basic rights. However the ministry and instead of appreciate our work, issued a resolution to decrease our pay that we earned through years of struggle.

Iraq is a very rich country and has all resources that are able to bring prosperity and welfare for every Iraqi. Therefore we present below our demands which we believe they are the demands of all the health care workers:

1. The abolishment of decree 23971

2. increase of the salary according to the inflation rate

3. issuing a payment called epidemic compensation pay

4. considering payment for employees with families and children

5. considering payment for overtime work or weekend

6. considering payment to compensate for transportation

7. considering absence period for political reasons or because of suppression of the former regime as a service time in the mentioned sector

8. decrease of hours of the working day to 6hr/day

9. passing a law to protect the healthcare workers from any physical or verbal abuse they face everyday

10. eliminating taxes

11. our ministry should be considered as a productive sector therefore should be included in the profit budget

12. issuing loans to the workers who want to get married

Federation of Workers Councils and Unions in Iraq –FWCUI

03.08.05