Internal Tensions within the Tunisian General Labor Union (UGTT) Intensify
The internal tensions within the Tunisian General Labor Union (UGTT) have significantly increased in recent days, amid controversy over the leadership of the current Secretary General, Noureddine Taboubi. Some union officials are contesting the "legality" of his renewed mandate in 2022. The Press — In addition to these organizational fractures, deep divisions have emerged regarding the strategy to be adopted towards the government. Some officials consider the calls for strikes to be inappropriate, while others now view the union leadership as a "distant elite from its base," further fueling questions about its legitimacy. It is in this context that the Administrative Commission met to set the date for the general strike announced from abroad by Deputy Secretary General Hfaiedh Hfaiedh. However, for many internal union actors, this escalation is a poor maneuver to divert attention from a deep crisis of confidence that has never been seen before and is shaking the union. In fact, some accuse the current leadership of using the standoff with the government to divert attention from its own discredit, while other voices mention a disillusioned union base demanding an extraordinary congress and the renewal of the executive bureau. This malaise is not new. In September 2024, it erupted when Deputy Secretary General Samir Cheffi was violently confronted by angry unionists who blocked his path in front of the UGTT headquarters in Tunis. This unprecedented episode revealed a latent conflict that had been simmering due to the non-elective Congress held in July 2021 in Sousse during the pandemic and marked by the controversial amendment of Article 20. This amendment had paved the way for the extension of mandates, before the 25th Congress in February 2022 in Sfax reconducted most of the old team. Despite these tensions, the Administrative Commission has announced a general strike for January 21, 2026. Meanwhile, an open conflict now opposes two currents regarding the date of the next congress. One defends the deadline of March 25-27, 2026, while the other demands a pure and simple postponement to the summer in the name of "additional legal guarantees." This rivalry is such that threats of resignation have emerged within the union leadership itself. Ultimately, between a strike it presents as indispensable and a contested internal congress, the UGTT is mired in its own contradictions. It seeks to assert its role as a counter-power while being weakened by internal tensions that blur the very meaning of its action.
