Beginning of the trade unionist movement

The first Trade Unionist organization :

The Tunisian Trade unionist movement started with Mohamed Ali Hammi who founded the League of Tunisian workers on the 1st of January 1925.

This first Trade unionist organization faced the attacks and the campaigns of the colonizers and the conservative forces.

In 1937, Belgassem El Gnaoui founded the second general confederation of Tunisian workers and in January 1938, Hedi Nouira (who became prime minister from 1970 until 1980) was elected as general secretary of this trade unionist organization.

This experience did not last for à long time since it disappeared after only two years of its foundation.

The independent Trade Unions :

In 1944, Farhat Hached and his Tunisian friends broke up with French trade union ‘’CGT’’ and decided to create a Tunisian trade unionist movement.

On the 19th of November 1944, the union of independent trade unions was created in the south and Hached was its general secretary. On the 6th of May 1945 the union of independent trade unions was created in the north.

These Trade unions presented the first nucleus for the foundation of the Tunisian General Trade Union (UGTT).

The Tunisian general Union of labor :

The congress of foundation of the Tunisian General Trade Union was held on the 20th of January 1946 in the Khaldounia in the capital city Tunis.

Hached directed the congress in which he declared the birth of Tunisian General Trade Union. This organization has had a leading role in the social and national struggles since its creation.

It also had many bloody confrontations with the colonizing forces, most importantly, the events of the 5th of august 1947 in Sfax and those of Enifida on November 21st, 1950.

In 1951, the Tunisian General trade Union became member of the international
Confederation of the Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and thus presented a voice defending the independence of Tunisia in all the international occasions.