Tunisian Private Sector Eligible for Salary Increase in 2026
Badr Smaoui, a social security expert, appeared on a private radio station and stated that the Tunisian private sector is currently entitled to a salary increase that was not applied in 2025, with the exception of certain companies that have already concluded internal agreements. He emphasized the responsibility of social partners in implementing this measure.
According to him, Article 15 of the 2026 Finance Bill, which provides for salary increases for the public and private sectors and their impact on pensions, is part of the guarantee of social stability and the improvement of purchasing power. He specified that this is a periodic measure, applied every three years. The expert recalled that these increases are usually promulgated by decree, citing the example of 2022, when an agreement with the Tunisian General Labor Union was applied without explicit mention of the negotiating parties.
The problem, according to him, lies in the fact that private sector increases are generally not regulated by decree. The President of the Republic therefore deemed it necessary to include this increase in the Finance Bill, due to the lack of an agreement between the UGTT and the employers' organization at the end of 2024.
Regarding the level of increases, Smaoui stated that it is not yet possible to determine a uniform percentage. The rates circulating in the media are inaccurate. During the 2022 negotiations, proposals ranged from 3.5% to 7.5%, illustrating the relative nature of the increases, linked to several indicators such as inflation, growth, and the state of public services.
He also noted that public finances are under pressure and that transfers between budget items are sometimes necessary. According to him, not resorting to the International Monetary Fund is the least damaging option, thanks to the improvement in economic performance in tourism and agriculture, which can generate additional resources.
As for the private sector, Smaoui announced that "negotiations will take into account the specific situation of each company. The government remains aware that salary increases have never been uniform and will continue to depend on the diversity of existing sectoral agreements, which number more than fifty." He specified that these increases do not constitute a burden for the state budget, unlike the public sector, which is financed by public funds.
