Workers in the public transport sector in the Tunisian capital held a surprise strike yesterday, which resulted in the paralysis of transport routes through buses and metro (trains) in protest against the delay in paying wages to company employees.
Since dawn, bus stations in the center of the capital are packed with travelers grumbling that they cannot get to their place of work.
Transport University (Syndicate) General Secretary Wajih al-Zaidi said in a press statement that “More than 8,300 employees have not yet received their salaries… This has caused congestion within the institution and among staff. “
The Tunisian transport company operates 250 buses and 15 trains that connect the capital with the larger region of Tunisia, which includes four provinces with a population of over two million people. The union official denounced the “lack of a response from any official from the Ministry (Transportation) regarding the date of payment of wages” and the “deterioration” of the situation with the company’s bus fleet.
The union affiliated with the General Union of Tunisia (Central Trade Union) did not give a date for the end of the strike.
Tunisia has been in an ongoing economic crisis for years, exacerbated by the aftermath of the Russian-Ukrainian war and the Covid-19 crisis.
Two weeks ago, the International Monetary Fund announced that it had reached an expert-level agreement with the Tunisian authorities to provide them with a $1.9 billion loan over 48 months, pending final approval in December.
In exchange for the loan, the Tunisian government is committing to a package of reforms, the most important of which is revising the subsidy policy and making it available to those who are eligible, and restructuring and reforming state-owned companies.
