Scheduled this Monday, May 5, the first meeting between the UGTT and the government to launch social negotiations in the private sector was postponed at the last minute.
In a press release relayed by its press body Echaab News, the Tunisian Labor Union said it was informed of the postponement by an official letter from the Minister of Social Affairs, addressed to the Secretary General of the Syndicate. The meeting is now reprogrammed for Friday May 9 at 4 p.m.
On the union side, the power plant had already started its preparations. The working group responsible for the private sector had met upstream to examine the main lines of future negotiations, both in substance and on the method. The UGTT National Executive Bureau had also met on May 2 to define the strategy to adopt.
These negotiations, according to the deputy secretary general of the Union, will focus on both financial demands and on organizational aspects. They will be carried out by sector by sector, in accordance with the request of the UGTT, in order to respond to the deterioration of workers’ purchasing power.
The union also intends to plead for a revaluation of wages, but not only: it wishes to revise the framework convention and an updating of the numerous sectoral agreements, deemed exceeded, in particular in terms of wage grids and working conditions.
