Photo: Diallo Cellou/SIPA
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The workers of Guinea in West Africa brought the country’s economy to a virtual standstill with a five-day general strike from Feb. 27 to March 3. The National Confederation of Guinean Workers and the Guinean Workers Trade Union, together representing 80,000 workers, called the strike after months of unsuccessful negotiations with the government. At the conclusion of the strike, the government promised to increase civil servant wages by 30 percent and reduce the taxes on state employee salaries by 10 percent.
Despite its great mineral wealth, Guinea is one of the poorest countries in the world. With inflation at 30 percent and a national currency declining in value, one sack of rice costs about $25, about half of a government employee’s monthly salary.
