Precarious Employment in Greater Tunis
13 August 2009
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Title: Precarious Employment in Greater Tunis With globalization being a lasting, if not permanent, feature of the economic landscape, the research and documentation department of the UGTT (Tunisian General Workers' Union) has undertaken a study of one of its impacts on the world of work: job insecurity. This study—conducted in Greater Tunis by four experts: a lawyer (Abdessalem Nssairi), a socio-economist (Saïd Ben Sedrine), a sociologist (Laroussi El Amri), and a specialist in human sociology (Mongi Amami)—, though "certain conclusions reflect the authors' point of view and do not necessarily reflect that of the UGTT," the union federation warns, reveals that four sectors are characterized by job insecurity: the textile industry, tourism, healthcare, the electricity and gas sector, and the beverage industry.
In the textile industry, many companies use fixed-term contracts (CDDs), a survey conducted as part of the study indicates. But job insecurity in this sector has two other causes: the transfer of ownership and, above all, the change in the location of businesses. A change of ownership in a company is accompanied by a restructuring of the workforce that is done without the knowledge of those concerned. "Often, the workers, who do not follow the events and news of their company since they do not read the official journal where they are published, are surprised by the arrival of a new boss and discover that the contracts that bound them to the former boss are null and void." A change that the authors of the study present as one of the "attributes of precarious employment since the worker finds himself back at square one and loses, in particular, his seniority."
The transfer of a company's location is another.
Recalling that nearly 10% of textile companies—or 220 out of a total of 2,168—changed addresses in 2006, the study emphasizes that such an event has the effect, in addition to a transport problem faced by the worker, of modifying the contract binding him to his company, and could above all result in a—temporary—drop in productivity which "could be a reason for dismissal" and renewal of the "human workforce."
According to the study, precarious employment is often found inside factories; all tasks related to administration and management are synonymous with stability.
In tourism, 58% of hotel employees were, during the 2006 season, in a precarious situation. This is the case, for example, for entertainers. Being "a basic fact, the seasonality of tourist activity in Tunisia puts the entertainer in a position of inferiority compared to his employer" who "takes advantage of it to request services not included in the legal contract."
The electricity and gas sector—that is, the STEG—has 1,000 workers (out of a total of 10,400) in "management," who, according to the study, "are deprived of social coverage, membership in the CNAM, a regular salary, retirement, promotion, etc." Certainly, recruitment notices—generally published by STEG in June and July, for effective hiring in September—may mention, in addition to hourly pay, the benefit of social coverage, and the provision of work clothes and rest periods. However, these provisions "are not automatically applied, since the rule is the non-payment of social contributions related to employment and the exception is the respect of the various social security laws," the study emphasizes.
Finally, the healthcare sector is the one where precarious employment is least present since this phenomenon would only affect 10% of the workforce. However, this sector differs from others by a different "mapping" of precariousness. Indeed, while they are the first to suffer from this phenomenon in other sectors, "the workers who perform marginal tasks—that is, those who are in charge of guarding, cleaning, cooking, transporting patients, etc.—enjoy stable employment, salaries, and social protection." While precariousness is, according to the study, the lot of beneficiaries of SIVP contracts among nursing assistants, nurses, and "sometimes doctors."
Published August 3, 2009
Posted online August 13, 2009
Webmanagercenter
In the textile industry, many companies use fixed-term contracts (CDDs), a survey conducted as part of the study indicates. But job insecurity in this sector has two other causes: the transfer of ownership and, above all, the change in the location of businesses. A change of ownership in a company is accompanied by a restructuring of the workforce that is done without the knowledge of those concerned. "Often, the workers, who do not follow the events and news of their company since they do not read the official journal where they are published, are surprised by the arrival of a new boss and discover that the contracts that bound them to the former boss are null and void." A change that the authors of the study present as one of the "attributes of precarious employment since the worker finds himself back at square one and loses, in particular, his seniority."
The transfer of a company's location is another.
Recalling that nearly 10% of textile companies—or 220 out of a total of 2,168—changed addresses in 2006, the study emphasizes that such an event has the effect, in addition to a transport problem faced by the worker, of modifying the contract binding him to his company, and could above all result in a—temporary—drop in productivity which "could be a reason for dismissal" and renewal of the "human workforce."
According to the study, precarious employment is often found inside factories; all tasks related to administration and management are synonymous with stability.
In tourism, 58% of hotel employees were, during the 2006 season, in a precarious situation. This is the case, for example, for entertainers. Being "a basic fact, the seasonality of tourist activity in Tunisia puts the entertainer in a position of inferiority compared to his employer" who "takes advantage of it to request services not included in the legal contract."
The electricity and gas sector—that is, the STEG—has 1,000 workers (out of a total of 10,400) in "management," who, according to the study, "are deprived of social coverage, membership in the CNAM, a regular salary, retirement, promotion, etc." Certainly, recruitment notices—generally published by STEG in June and July, for effective hiring in September—may mention, in addition to hourly pay, the benefit of social coverage, and the provision of work clothes and rest periods. However, these provisions "are not automatically applied, since the rule is the non-payment of social contributions related to employment and the exception is the respect of the various social security laws," the study emphasizes.
Finally, the healthcare sector is the one where precarious employment is least present since this phenomenon would only affect 10% of the workforce. However, this sector differs from others by a different "mapping" of precariousness. Indeed, while they are the first to suffer from this phenomenon in other sectors, "the workers who perform marginal tasks—that is, those who are in charge of guarding, cleaning, cooking, transporting patients, etc.—enjoy stable employment, salaries, and social protection." While precariousness is, according to the study, the lot of beneficiaries of SIVP contracts among nursing assistants, nurses, and "sometimes doctors."
Published August 3, 2009
Posted online August 13, 2009
Webmanagercenter
