Her reinstatement as head of department comes after nearly 18 months of negotiations between her union, the Syndicat Generale de la Marine Marchande et des Ports (SGMMP), the ITF-affiliated Union Générale Tunisienne du Travail (UGTT) and the Tunisian ministry of transport.
Krichen was dismissed in June 2013 following a SGMMP strike at the port over the management’s failure to implement the terms of an agreement with the union. Krichen’s sacking by the company’s general manager flouted Tunisian labour law, which requires prior consultation with the transport of ministry and which considers as arbitrary any dismissal where charges are not proved. Tunisian unions believed that her dismissal was part of a broader government attack on trade union activity.
This dismissal and other anti-union actions in Tunisia prompted worldwide union solidarity. In December 2013, theITF wrote to the Tunisian prime minister and transport minister to urge the government to reinstate Krichen and all other recently sacked workers, stop its attack on trade unions, start a meaningful dialogue with its affiliate the Fédération Nationale des Transports (FNT), and recognise all UGTT/FNT agreements. The ITF women’s conference in Delhi in January 2013 urged affiliates to protest to the company and the government.
Thouraya Krichen said: “These attacks did not hold back the UMT from undertaking its role, whether to serve the interests of workers or to lead the national dialogue during democratic transition in our country.
“There were so many protests and union struggles during this period and efforts to reinstate dismissed unionists. I would like to thank all trade unionists for their unconditional support and solidarity, through the letters sent to me, and the ministry of transport for insisting on my reinstatement.”
Bilal Malkawi, ITF Arab World regional secretary, added that this victory was owed to the months of solidarity campaigning by activists locally and internationally, and showed the strength of the ITF global family.
