Tunisia airport workers call off strike

Tunisian airport employees have called off a strike slated to take place this week after a deal was reached with the government to improve work conditions, their union said on Monday, averting a threatened disruption of tourist traffic.

The government had met most of the aviation sector’s demands, the union in charge of airport workers said in a statement. It gave no further details but added that the peak tourist and Muslim pilgrimage season were further reasons for calling off the strike, which had been announced by a union leader hours earlier.

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Tunisia is in the midst of an austerity program agreed with foreign donors such as the International Monetary Fund. Government officials have rejected union demands for pay rises in a bloated public service which the IMF wants to trim.

The country’s tourism sector has recovered since two Islamist militant attacks in 2015 killed dozens of foreigners.

Some 3 million tourists visited Tunisia from Jan. 1 through to June 30, up 26 per cent from the same period last year, according to official figures seen by Reuters this month.