Canceled flights, immobilized public transport and closed post offices: a strike at the call of the trade union center paralyzed the public sector in Tunisia on Thursday, increasing the pressure on President Kais Saied already facing serious political and financial crises.
The 24-hour strike, called by the powerful Tunisian General Labor Union (UGTT) and which seemed widely observed in all cities, theoretically concerns some 3 million employees and should paralyze 159 state-owned companies.
“Your strike is followed at 96.22%”, welcomed the leader of the UGTT Noureddine Taboubi during a fiery speech in front of hundreds of activists gathered in front of his headquarters in Tunis.
Flights departing from and arriving at Tunis international airport have been canceled because the staff of the public company that manages the compound are taking part in the strike.
Tunisair, also public, announced the cancellation of all its flights.
Telecoms, postal services, public gas, electricity and water companies and transport: the strike affects large parts of the services. It also leads to the immobilization of public transport (trains, trams and buses).
In his speech, Mr. Taboubi blamed the government for the failure of wage negotiations that led to the strike.
“It’s an intransigent government that sows discord and spreads false information,” he said. He accused “mercenaries” in power of “carrying out campaigns of demonization and harassment” against the UGTT.
– “The fight will not stop” –
Faced with galloping inflation, the UGTT is calling in particular for new wage agreements to “correct purchasing power” for the years 2022 and 2023 as well as, retroactively, for 2021.
It also demands the withdrawal of a government circular prohibiting ministries from conducting bilateral sectoral discussions without the agreement of the head of government.
“It is not a rise in wages that we are asking for, but to readjust the purchasing power of workers to take inflation into account,” said Mr. Taboubi, for whom this readjustment should be more than 10 %.
“We will not stop the fight, no matter the cost, until our demands are met,” he added.
Mr. Taboubi underlined that the UGTT would also not give up on its request to abolish a 1% contribution deducted since 2018 from wages to make up for the deficit in the social security funds.
The strike comes as Kais Saied, who assumed full power 11 months ago, is under intense criticism from the opposition for excluding her from a national dialogue that was supposed to lead to a new Constitution which he plans to submit to a referendum on 25 July.
The UGTT declined an invitation to participate in this dialogue.
“We do not think that this dialogue is likely to get Tunisia out of its crises”, repeated Mr. Taboubi, affirming that his organization “will not serve as a guarantee for President Saied or any political party”.
– “Collective failure” –
Despite its detractors accusing it of ignoring the country’s enormous financial difficulties, the UGTT appears to be in a position of strength since the government needs its support for the reform program it has submitted to the International Monetary Fund in the hope to get a new loan.
This reform plan provides for a freeze in the civil service payroll, a reduction in certain subsidies and a restructuring of state enterprises.
The UGTT is asking for “guarantees” so that public enterprises, including many monopolies (cereals office, electricity, fuel, phosphates, etc.), are not privatized.
An influential actor on the political scene since its creation in 1946, the UGTT received in 2015 with three other Tunisian organizations the Nobel Peace Prize for its contribution to the democratic transition in Tunisia, the cradle of the Arab Spring in 2011 but where democracy has been faltering since Mr. Saied’s coup in July 2021.
“This strike is the culmination of a collective failure of ten successive governments, the UGTT, the IMF and Tunisia’s international partners. The transition to democracy has not been accompanied by any change in the economic structure of Tunisia. country,” said Fadhel Kaboub, a Tunisian professor of economics at Denison University in the United States.