Labour Day

Labour Day in Tunisia places the international May 1 workers' commemoration in a country with a particularly influential union history. Tunisian unionists founded the Union Générale Tunisienne du Travail (UGTT) on January 20, 1946 under Farhat Hached; the movement participated in the anti-colonial struggle as well as later bargaining over wages, work and social protection.

Organised labour has continued to play civic roles after independence and the 2011 revolution. The UGTT joined the employers' organisation UTICA, the Human Rights League and the bar association in the National Dialogue Quartet, awarded the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize. That record does not mean one union or official speech represents informal workers, unemployed people, employers or every political view.

The decree assigns one day of public-sector leave on May 1; private pay and work are governed by the Labour Code and applicable implementing or collective rules. Presidential Decree No. 2021-223 grants holiday leave to personnel of the State, local authorities and administrative public institutions; its wording is not a blanket rule for every private workplace. Labour Code articles 107-110 provide that paid non-working holidays in private employment are fixed by decree or collective agreements, protect covered pay and add an equal indemnity where an employee in a non-stoppable activity works the holiday. Employees must therefore check the rule or collective agreement governing their sector. Neither cited text creates a general next-working-day substitute when a holiday falls on Saturday or Sunday.