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Tunisia adopts system for voluntary redundancies in public sector

February 10, 2017 at 12:20 pm

Police officers block the road as Tunisians stage a protest demanding employment, at the in Tunis, Tunisia on 1 February 2017 [Yassine Gaidi – Anadolu Agency]

Tunisia’s minister of public service and governance revealed on Thursday that the government has formally approved a programme for the voluntary redundancy of public sector employees. Abid Briki made the announcement to journalists on the sidelines of the national conference for strategic modernisation of management and civil service held in Tunis.

The government has set the end of May as the deadline to receive applications from employees who wish to quit their jobs voluntarily.

Read: Tunisia’s Essebsi has only honoured one third of his election promises

His government colleague, Minister of Development, Investment and International Cooperation Mohamed Fadel Abdul-Kafi, told Anadolu news agency earlier that the public sector wages bill has increased in Tunisia from $2.8 billion to $5.9 billion within five years. “This will create a budget deficit of 6.5 per cent of GDP, and increase the Tunisian state debt from $11 billion to $24.5 billion,” he pointed out at the time.

Prime Minister Yusuf Al-Chahid said that the redundancy programme will begin in July.