General strike in Tunisia to protest against government’s refusal to raise wages

SANAA, Jan. 17 (YPA) – Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT) announced a nationwide public strike on Thursday to protest the government’s refusal to raise the salaries of 670, 000 government employees.

The one-day strike affects important institutions, including airports, schools and the media affiliated to the Federation.

The UGTT announced the failure of negotiations to raise staff salaries with the government.

“The meeting of Prime Minister Yusuf al-Shahed, with the Secretary-General of the Union Noureddine al-Tubobi, did not take more than three minutes, which means the failure of the negotiations,” Hafeez Hafeez, assistant secretary general of the Tunisian said.

The Tunisian government is under pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is demanding to freeze public sector wages as part of economic reforms to help reduce the country’s budget deficit.

E.M