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On Monday March 16th, Ibrahim Hassan Ibrahim, a driver for Family Transport, a transportation company contracted by the American University in Cairo, fell from the roof of his bus while cleaning it as mandated by his employer. He sustained major injuries that have so far resulted in £E11,000 (US$1,956) in medical expenses for surgery, plus £E80 (US$14) every day or two for pain medication. Family Transport drivers are paid around £E625 (US$111) per month and are not provided any health benefits, yet both Family Transport and the American University in Cairo have refused to compensate Ibrahim for his medical expenses and lost wages resulting from the work-related accident.

With the university’s move last fall to a desert compound 25km (16 miles) from its old downtown location with no public transportation services, AUC was forced to provide transportation for its students, faculty and staff. In keeping with corporate restructuring schemes common in institutions of higher education around the world, AUC decided to outsource many university functions, including transportation, signing a $2 million contract with Family Transport. The AUC administration has often justified the outsourcing of the university’s labor by claiming that it wishes to focus on its “core competencies” in education, thus admitting its incompetence when it comes to functions that are nevertheless vital to the administration of a university, ethical labor relations among them. Given AUC’s admitted incompetence, and its failure to contract with outside companies who will make up for that deficit, we feel it is necessary to transmit a valuable lesson in efficient and ethical university administration: you can outsource your labor, but you can’t outsource your moral responsibility.

We demand that AUC immediately assume full responsibility for the cost of all job-related injuries, including Ibrahim Hassan’s surgery and ongoing care, and enforce workplace safety protections.