By Michael Oche
The African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa) has expressed strong solidarity with the Union Générale Tunisienne du Travail (UGTT) and banking sector workers in Tunisia who have embarked on strike action to demand fair wages and improved living conditions.
In a statement issued from Lomé, Togo, and signed by its General Secretary, Comrade Akhator Joel Odigie, ITUC-Africa said the strike action must be understood within Tunisia’s broader socio-economic context, marked by high inflation, slow growth, and shrinking real incomes.
“Workers cannot be asked to carry the burden of adjustment while their wages fall behind prices,” Odigie said, noting that employees in the banking and financial sector have faced a “double injustice” of rising living costs and stagnant pay.
The organization emphasized that the right to strike is a legitimate, internationally recognised instrument for defending workers’ interests, especially when avenues for social dialogue have broken down.
According to ITUC-Africa, the unions affiliated with UGTT resorted to industrial action after previous efforts to negotiate wage adjustments and policy reforms were ignored.
It urged Tunisian authorities and employers in the banking and financial sector to return to the negotiation table and address workers’ grievances in good faith.
Among the key issues raised by the workers are adjusting wages to restore purchasing power; reviewing fiscal or finance-law provisions that have reduced take-home pay; and unblocking social negotiations to enable normal collective bargaining.
ITUC-Africa reminded the Tunisian government that UGTT has historically played a stabilising and democratising role in the country and remains crucial to maintaining social peace.
Odigie cautioned that undermining union activity or disregarding legitimate socio-economic demands would only deepen uncertainty and hardship.
“Tunisia’s ongoing fiscal and economic pressures cannot be resolved by squeezing workers’ wages. Social justice, decent work, and functioning collective bargaining are part of the solution, not the problem,” the statement added.
The continental labour body, which represents over 18 million workers across 52 African countries, called on the Tunisian government to guarantee the right to strike, protect trade union freedoms, and engage in genuine dialogue that can lead to sustainable industrial peace.
It also urged the global trade union community to monitor developments in Tunisia and be prepared to extend support to the UGTT and affected workers.
