{"id":18246,"date":"2026-04-29T12:00:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T10:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=18246"},"modified":"2026-10-08T22:14:21","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:14:21","slug":"rehabilitation-office-workers-egypt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/rehabilitation-office-workers-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"Egypt\u2019s Rehabilitation-Office Workers: Low Pay and Insurance Deductions Without Clear Coverage"},"content":{"rendered":"

This report presents testimony and correspondence gathered by April 2026, in the context of the restructuring of Egypt\u2019s social rehabilitation offices.<\/em><\/p>\n

In 2020, Ali Abdelsalam, whose name has been changed, began working as a social worker at a rehabilitation office for people with disabilities in a district of Qena governorate. His annually renewable contract provided a basic monthly salary of about EGP 2,500. Incentives and transport allowances brought his income close to EGP 3,200.<\/p>\n

Social Solidarity Minister Maya Morsi subsequently ordered field-monitoring committees<\/a> to inspect the country\u2019s rehabilitation offices, then numbering 232, alongside 150 rehabilitation bodies affiliated with the ministry. The visits were scheduled between August and 1 October 2024. Ali says he and his colleagues underwent assessments, after which successful candidates were selected to sign new contracts in January 2025. According to his account, these stipulated a functional salary exceeding EGP 4,100, accompanied by official promises to apply the minimum wage.<\/p>\n

At that stage, the offices were still run through civil-society associations receiving funding from the associations\u2019 fund. The arrangements changed after a directive dated 13 January 2025 from the Ministry of Social Solidarity\u2019s Central Administration for Persons with Disabilities to relocate and integrate rehabilitation offices into local social-affairs departments across the country.<\/p>\n

Responsibility was transferred to the National Foundation for Family and Community Development, whose board of trustees is chaired by the social solidarity minister. The foundation is a central civil-society organisation registered under No. 208 of 1991; that number is a registration reference, not a law establishing it. In his account of its history<\/a>, the foundation\u2019s executive director says it was registered under Associations Law No. 32 of 1964, and its legal position was subsequently adjusted under Law No. 84 of 2002 and Civil Society Law No. 149 of 2019.<\/p>\n

Ali says the reality soon proved disappointing. His actual take-home pay does not exceed EGP 3,080 after deductions listed as insurance contributions. When he tried to obtain a statement of insured employment periods, he says, he discovered that he was not registered with the National Organisation for Social Insurance and that the payments had not been remitted. He tells Zawia3 that his colleagues faced the same problem.<\/p>\n

Ali and his colleagues also work in joint field committees with the medical commission, assessing people with disabilities and their eligibility for an Integrated Services Card. Their duties require visits to people confined to bed in their homes, across distant villages and districts. He says they pay for these journeys themselves, sometimes spending more than EGP 200, without receiving a transport allowance.<\/p>\n

Initially, they used their own resources in the hope that the government\u2019s promises would be fulfilled. Over time, rising prices and inflation made the burden increasingly difficult to bear. Ali says some began missing joint-committee visits in recent months, while others stopped attending altogether because they could no longer afford the work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe staff perform their duties in government premises, sign official attendance registers and work under direct administrative supervision from the Central Administration for Persons with Disabilities. But they do not receive government employees\u2019 rights, and private-sector rules are not applied to them either,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cAll we want is the minimum wage, even if we do not receive allowances or outstanding payments. We just want a wage that allows us to carry on.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Ali nevertheless understands the sensitivity of his role. A social worker\u2019s responsibilities extend beyond technical assessment to psychological support for people with disabilities, requiring emotional steadiness. He finds those demands difficult to reconcile with the pressure of being unable to meet his own family\u2019s needs. Like hundreds of people working in rehabilitation offices, he has spent years waiting for his employment position to be resolved.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/div>\n

When workers pay to deliver the service<\/h2>\n

Hoda Mohamed describes similar circumstances. She has worked as a social worker for seven years at a rehabilitation office in an Aswan village. Following the 2024 assessment, her team shrank from seven employees to four. She says they each receive no more than EGP 3,080 after insurance deductions, with payments often delayed by around three weeks, leaving them trapped in debt.<\/p>\n

A mother of three, Hoda recalls that wages were paid more regularly when civil-society associations ran the offices. Transport allowances were available, as were basic supplies, from paper and stationery to cleaning materials and refreshments. Since responsibility shifted to the National Foundation for Family and Community Development, she says, employees have bought these essentials themselves.<\/p>\n

Fieldwork has also become more demanding. People with severe disabilities no longer necessarily travel to the office for assessment; Hoda and her colleagues visit them at home as part of joint committees with the medical commission. Each trip costs her about EGP 200, and the visits occur five or six times a month, she tells Zawia3.<\/p>\n

Her salary has no fixed payment date and can arrive weeks late. She cites her March 2025 wage, paid on 21 April. There are no incentives, seasonal bonuses or annual increases, she says. Despite deductions of EGP 1,000 a month described as insurance, she maintains that she and her colleagues had still not obtained health or social-insurance coverage when she spoke to the reporter.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur salaries go on transport, work supplies and the office\u2019s operating and cleaning expenses. The office now runs on our contributions as workers, instead of contributions from associations and local residents. Sometimes we borrow money to cover the cost of working,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Hoda says this situation continues despite government supervision and staff compliance with official working rules. In her account, employees receive neither the pay, insurance nor job security enjoyed by government staff. She wants transport allowances, health and social insurance, and the minimum wage. By April 2026, the government had announced<\/a> that the minimum for state employees would rise from EGP 7,000 to EGP 8,000 that July. However, a government-sector increase does not automatically apply to employees of a civil-society foundation. The National Wages Council<\/a> had set the private-sector minimum at EGP 7,000 from March 2025, calculated according to the wage definition and rules in its decision.<\/p>\n

A precise comparison also requires distinguishing the EGP 3,080 take-home amount reported by the workers from the legally defined wage used to calculate the minimum. Subtracting one from the other does not establish a court-verified entitlement to arrears without examining salary components, contributions and contracts. The underlying complaints remain the low amount workers receive and the lack of clarity about deductions and insurance coverage.<\/p>\n

The workers interviewed by Zawia3 say low and delayed pay, unavailable allowances and missing insurance coverage have intensified their difficulties for more than a year. The report estimates the workforce at roughly 900 to 1,000, without an independently verified staff list. The ministry\u2019s 2024 announcement counted 232 offices, while the official interviewed for this report puts the number at approximately 225 at the time of the interview. These figures come from different sources and periods; they cannot, by themselves, establish what happened to each office or employee.<\/p>\n

A complaint addressed to Labour Minister Hassan Raddad, a copy of which Zawia3 obtained, states that rehabilitation-office workers receive EGP 3,080 after social-insurance deductions, paid irregularly and without a fixed date. It says the minimum wage has not been applied and that staff are required to participate in joint committees and grievance committees without allowances.<\/p>\n

The complaint further alleges that the National Foundation for Family and Community Development has not remitted social-insurance contributions, allowing arrears to exceed EGP 5 million. It says this has prevented completion of health-insurance enrolment despite monthly deductions from staff wages. The sum is an allegation in the workers\u2019 complaint, not the result of an independent audit of the foundation\u2019s accounts or a court finding establishing the debt.<\/p>\n

\"Workers\u2019
A copy of the workers\u2019 complaint to the labour minister.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
<\/svg><\/div>\n

A change of administration and disputed insurance coverage<\/h2>\n

In a separate letter addressed to Social Solidarity Minister Maya Morsi, also obtained by Zawia3, workers say their offices were financially affiliated with civil-society associations and administratively supervised by the ministry\u2019s social rehabilitation administration until January 2025. Most employees were insured, they say. The letter\u2019s authors describe being surprised by the associations\u2019 dissolution and the termination of their insurance registration despite continuing to work. \u201cDissolution\u201d is the description used in their complaint. The accompanying restructuring correspondence specifically refers to withdrawing the assignment of offices from associations and transferring it to the foundation; that action alone does not establish that each association was legally dissolved.<\/p>\n

The letter says workers have not received the minimum wage and instead receive monthly payments of about EGP 3,000, irregularly. It requests restoration of insurance coverage, application of the minimum wage and Labour Law, and the transfer of financial and administrative responsibility for the offices to the ministry\u2019s General Administration for the Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities.<\/p>\n

\"Rehabilitation-office
Workers\u2019 letter requesting insurance coverage, the minimum wage and application of Labour Law.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A follow-up memorandum from the Central Administration for Persons with Disabilities refers to an earlier letter dated 13 January 2025 on restructuring rehabilitation offices and integrating them into local social-affairs departments. It explains the plan in terms of stronger governance and better services for people with disabilities. The document reproduced here sets out implementation and relocation arrangements; it does not demonstrate that insurance contributions or staff entitlements have been paid.<\/p>\n

The follow-up sets out measures including identifying suitable premises consisting of two ground-floor rooms within the social-affairs departments, inspecting their readiness, and completing relocation within no more than 15 days. Certain premises owned by the directorates or situated inside comprehensive rehabilitation centres are excepted from relocation.<\/p>\n

It also requires directorate committees to select competent, experienced teams of no more than four employees per office. The specified roles include a reviewer, a social worker or psychologist, a vocational specialist and a secretary, with alternatives where particular specialisms are unavailable. The director of the local social-affairs department is to supervise the office directly.<\/p>\n

The memorandum withdraws office assignments from the associations and transfers them to the National Foundation for Family and Community Development, paving the way for contracts with the selected workers. The ministry is to monitor the relocation technically and administratively and organise training to improve staff skills and the quality of their work.<\/p>\n

\"First
The restructuring follow-up memorandum refers to earlier correspondence dated 13 January 2025. Page 1.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Second
Staff selection, reassignment and supervision arrangements in the same memorandum. Page 2.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the first episode<\/a> of the \u201cHona El-Tadamon\u201d podcast in January 2025, Khalil Mohamed Khalil, head of the Central Administration for Persons with Disabilities, described a comprehensive restructuring after ending the offices\u2019 affiliation with associations. He said they would be assigned from January 2025 to an institutional body intended to ensure regular wage payments and compliance with the minimum wage.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/div>\n

Which law governs the employment relationship?<\/h2>\n

Adel Amer, a public-law expert and director of the Egyptian Centre for Political, Legal and Social Studies, argues that rehabilitation-office staff are not employees of the state\u2019s administrative apparatus. Rather, they work for civil-society organisations operating under private law. In his assessment, Labour Law No. 14 of 2025<\/a> applies, rather than Civil Service Law No. 81 of 2016, the former Civilian State Employees Law No. 47 of 1978, which the Civil Service Law repealed, or Public Business Sector Companies Law No. 203 of 1991 as amended by Law No. 185 of 2020. He notes that the offices originally operated through voluntary work before evolving into regular paid employment.<\/p>\n

On complaints that insurance contributions are deducted but not remitted, Amer tells Zawia3 that workers should pursue two parallel legal routes. One is a complaint to the competent social-insurance office, enabling an inspector to examine the records and verify whether contributions have been paid. The other is a formal complaint to the competent labour office concerning non-application of the legally prescribed minimum wage.<\/p>\n

Khaled El-Gamal, a lawyer at the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights, agrees that the workers fall within Labour Law No. 14 of 2025. Associations and foundations are treated as private entities, even when working in coordination with government bodies, he explains. In his assessment, these workers do not acquire public-employee status simply through that coordination; such status is tied to employment within the state apparatus under the relevant civil-service framework.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cBeing covered by Labour Law gives workers the right to demand the minimum wage under the decisions regulating the private sector. They may go to court to claim the difference if the minimum has not been applied,\u201d El-Gamal tells Zawia3.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

He says a failure to remit contributions deducted from wages, if established, would be a serious violation that could create legal and criminal liability for the responsible party, particularly if it continued for a lengthy period and substantial arrears accumulated. Non-payment directly affects employees\u2019 recorded insurance periods, threatening their future pension and social-insurance rights.<\/p>\n

El-Gamal adds that the reported lack of insurance raises questions about these employees\u2019 precise legal position and points to problems or uncertainty in the contractual arrangements. The new contracts made after the administrative transfer must be examined to determine the nature of the relationship and the legal framework governing it.<\/p>\n

Identifying the body obliged to pay contributions and apply the minimum wage depends directly on the contractual relationship, he explains. Where workers have no contracts or have not been given copies, as the employees interviewed by Zawia3 report, documenting and pursuing their claims becomes more difficult. It does not, however, extinguish their right to establish an employment relationship through the legally recognised forms of evidence.<\/p>\n

Labour Law requires a written contract and a copy for the worker. Where no written contract exists, the relationship, its duration and the rights arising from it may be proved by different forms of evidence. Law No. 14 of 2025 took effect in September 2025; earlier periods must be examined under the legislation and decisions then in force. That distinction matters when claims involve wage differences or insurance contributions spanning several years.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/div>\n

Fixed-term contracts and the official response<\/h2>\n

An official at the Ministry of Social Solidarity\u2019s Central Administration for Persons with Disabilities tells Zawia3 that rehabilitation offices do not belong directly to the state\u2019s administrative apparatus. They operate through the civil-society framework, with management assigned to the National Foundation for Family and Community Development in cooperation with associations.<\/p>\n

The official, who declined to be named, says staff work under fixed-term contracts containing clear terms, particularly on pay. He denies that they have been made permanent government employees, explaining that appointment to the state apparatus involves separate requirements relating to established posts and the public budget.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe governing legal framework for these workers is Civil Society Law No. 149 of 2019, with some provisions of Labour Law No. 14 of 2025 used for procedural matters such as leave and disciplinary sanctions,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Civil Society Law No. 149 of 2019<\/a> and its implementing regulations establish the governance framework for associations and foundations, including their resources, boards and staff. Restrictions and exceptions concerning the combination of board membership and paid work should not be treated as an unrestricted licence to combine jobs. An organisation\u2019s power to set salaries and manage its budget also does not automatically exempt it from employment and social-insurance obligations. Resolving this dispute requires identifying the employer, contractual terms and work actually performed.<\/p>\n

On wages, the official maintains that salaries are paid regularly each month, between the middle of the month and the twentieth. Any delays in particular cases, he says, relate to procedures within associations rather than the ministry. He says there is one paying body and employees receive their entitlements periodically.<\/p>\n

Asked about staff paying their own transport costs for joint committees and fieldwork, he describes these as internal organisational matters handled administratively. He insists that no employee is assigned duties without provision for their financial entitlements. Any problems, he says, are temporary and connected to payment mechanisms or document review, particularly when processing information from different governorates.<\/p>\n

The official puts the national number of rehabilitation offices at approximately 225. Workers\u2019 demands or objections, he says, should be raised within the contractual relationship and considered according to the resources available. He adds that staff retain the option of continuing or ending their contracts if they cannot agree to the working terms.<\/p>\n

Eman Karim, general supervisor of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities, tells Zawia3 that social rehabilitation offices fall under the Ministry of Social Solidarity, outside the council\u2019s direct remit. Staffing, administrative and financial matters, including pay and insurance, are the responsibility of the relevant executive bodies within the ministry and its affiliated institutions.<\/p>\n

She explains that the council receives and examines individual complaints, refers them to the competent bodies and follows up their responses. For complaints concerning insurance or financial entitlements, it coordinates with the agencies responsible for examining each case and establishing or rejecting entitlement under the applicable procedures.<\/p>\n

Asked whether staff working conditions could affect services for people with disabilities, Karim says the sector may face difficulties in particular cases. Those circumstances differ, however, and cannot be generalised without accurate data or documented institutional monitoring.<\/p>\n

The testimony and complaints gathered for this report, set against the official\u2019s response, reveal a dispute about regular pay, insurance contributions and the cost of delivering services after restructuring. Working in government premises alone does not settle an employee\u2019s legal status. Nor does describing pay as a \u201creward\u201d or assigning management to a civil-society foundation resolve the question of employment rights. Amid shifting responsibilities and multiple layers of supervision, workers say financial and insurance insecurity threatens their ability to continue providing services on which people with disabilities and their families depend.<\/p>\n

As complaints continue to circulate between bodies, resolving the dispute depends on clarifying the employment framework, making contractual arrangements transparent and applying the laws governing wages and social insurance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Workers report low pay, insurance deductions and out-of-pocket operating costs after Egypt reorganised its rehabilitation offices. An official disputes claims of delayed wages.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":18236,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[390],"tags":[19051,401,19049,3502,12992,19048,19050],"kateb":[1550],"class_list":["post-18246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-rights","tag-disability-services","tag-egypt","tag-labour-rights","tag-minimum-wage","tag-ministry-of-social-solidarity","tag-rehabilitation-offices","tag-social-insurance","kateb-aya-yasser"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/rehabworkers-cover-wide.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18246"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18246\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18253,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18246\/revisions\/18253"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18236"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18246"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=18246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}