Ikhlass Al-Hamrouni

Tunis — Tunisia is witnessing a major human rights crisis. Between the crackdown on women’s rights activists and advocates, and the suspension of civil society organizations, the stories of women working in Tunisian industries continue to surface, revealing daily suffering marked by exhaustion, injustice, and harsh conditions—often ending in arbitrary dismissal for demanding their legitimate rights.

Maryam Boualleg, a 45-year-old woman from Sidi Bouzid, packed her belongings in 2008 and headed to the capital, Tunis, in search of work after losing hope in her hometown, which suffers from a lack of job opportunities. After a long search, she found employment in a textile factory. However, after five years of hard work and perseverance, she found herself a victim of arbitrary dismissal for demanding improved working conditions and guaranteed rights for women workers.

Harsh Working Conditions and Poor Treatment

Speaking about the difficult conditions she endured, Maryam Boualleg said: “I came to the city of Tunis looking for work because there were no opportunities in Sidi Bouzid and no source of income, but it was far harder than I expected.”

She explained that some factories operate on a shift system: “During the morning shift, we had to leave our homes at four or five in the morning to arrive on time. During the second shift, we wouldn’t get home until around 11 p.m. Despite this, there was no respect or appreciation. They shouted at us constantly and forced us to work whether we were sick or healthy.”

Describing her personal experience, she noted that during training she was required to work without anyone explaining the correct methods. “They didn’t try to simplify things or teach us gradually; everything I learned came from personal trial and error,” she said, pointing out that the factory provided no support or facilitation. “The future in that place was bleak.”

Despite all the effort and exhaustion, wages were extremely low. She questioned how anyone could live and continue working under such pressure and injustice. “We worked long hours and endured harsh conditions without any guarantee of our rights.”

Demanding Rights and Arbitrary Dismissal

Speaking about her legal experience, she said: “Because I had some knowledge of the law, I realized that these harsh working conditions did not align with our rights, and that the factory was exploiting labor without guaranteeing even the most basic rights. When I demanded higher wages and bonuses, management refused, considered it an act of defiance, and punished me with a verbal interrogation.”

Despite the rejection, she did not stop defending the confiscated rights of women workers. In response, management became increasingly creative in imposing penalties. Maryam discussed the situation with her colleagues and encouraged them to demand their rights and improve working conditions, as they too had begun to complain—something that angered management and caused further problems.

Explaining the reason behind her dismissal, she said: “I endured all the harsh conditions, working long night shifts in extreme heat during summer and bitter cold in winter. When I finally demanded our rights after five years of denial and marginalization, I was shocked by my arbitrary dismissal without any compensation.”

A Cry for Justice and Advice to the New Generation

After being dismissed, Maryam Boualleg tried to hold on to her job and refused to comply with the dismissal decision, eventually filing a complaint with the labor union. However, even attempts to communicate with the union failed; she was informed that there was no workers’ union in the factory, making negotiation with management difficult.

Left without work or a stable income to secure a dignified life, she took on various seasonal jobs—from selling goods in a small shop to working in a bakery—to cover rent, water and electricity bills, and daily necessities.

After a long journey of exhaustion and instability, Maryam decided to leave the city and return to Sidi Bouzid to start a small personal project. She said, “Not all workplaces provide a safe environment; most workers suffer in silence.”

In concluding her remarks, she explained that all she wanted was to live with dignity: “All I wanted was justice and dignity. I asked for nothing more than my legitimate rights. I lost a lot, but I learned that a person must stand up to injustice and always strive to improve their circumstances and the lives of those around them.”

Enforced Silence Inside Factories

The experience of Ihsan Ben Mohamed is not much different from that of Maryam Boualleg, as it reflects another reality of forced labor and enforced silence inside some factories.

Ihsan Ben Mohamed, a 48-year-old Tunisian woman with a university degree, was unable to find a job that matched her qualifications. After years of searching, she decided to work in factories to avoid being left without income. She said: “I went through many experiences in Sousse and Tunis, and was forced to work in dough, electronics, and textile factories despite the harsh conditions.”

She concealed her educational level, saying: “I claimed I only had a secondary education because factories do not accept university graduates—they fear they will demand their rights.” She explained that most of her experiences were short-lived, either because she quit due to exhaustion or because she was dismissed, citing an incident where she was fired simply because management discovered she held a university degree.

Forced Labor

Ihsan Ben Mohamed affirmed that “working in factories is particularly exhausting for women due to the shift system, especially the night shift, where we stand for long hours to meet the required productivity.” She added that treatment lacks respect, and team supervisors pressure women workers to satisfy management without regard for conditions—whether in extreme heat or severe cold.

She explained that breaks do not exceed half an hour to an hour, formal employment is a distant dream, and contracts are renewed monthly or every six months. “Often, problems are deliberately created for women workers before permanent hiring in order to dismiss them,” she said, noting low wages compared to the effort exerted. Any demand for rights, she added, is met with mistreatment or dismissal—especially if a worker tries to persuade her colleagues to protest or organize union activities.

Regarding the exploitation of labor, Ihsan Ben Mohamed said: “Factories exploit women because labor in Tunisia is cheap. This encourages investors to come without guaranteeing rights or social protection.”

The testimonies of Maryam Boualleg and Ihsan Ben Mohamed are only two examples of a much broader reality experienced by thousands of women workers in Tunisian factories, where the pursuit of a livelihood turns into a daily struggle for dignity amid weak oversight, limited social protection, and the continued precarity of labor as one of the most prominent manifestations of the country’s economic and social crisis.