CAIRO — The Egyptian parliament approved Dec. 5 the trade union draft law that has been widely criticized by Egyptian independent trade unions as furthering strict government control over these groups, raising questions about the future of the labor movements in Egypt.

The draft law was prepared by the Egypt's Labor Ministry in 2016 as an alternative to the Trade Union law No. 35 of 1976. The draft was approved by the Egyptian government in January, and approved in principle by the Egyptian parliament on Nov. 7. The parliament issued its final approval of the draft law in its fifth plenary session Dec. 5.

Maysaa Atwa, a member of the parliament's Manpower Committee, told Al-Monitor that one step toward the formal adoption of the draft remains, and that the draft law is scheduled to be submitted to the president for ratification before being published in the Official Gazette to enter into force.

Egyptian Minister of Manpower Mohamed Saafan said in a press statement Dec. 6 that the draft law provides workers with the right to form trade unions, and to join or withdraw from them. According to Saafan, the law is in line with the International Labor Organization (ILO) standards and conventions ratified by Egypt in regard to the freedom of association.