FTDES launches campaign for working women’s health rights

Forum Tunisien pour les Droits Economiques et Sociaux (The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights - FTDES) launched a solidarity campaign for women working in the textile industry. The campaign calls for women’s full access to health care coverage in situations where they have been laid off. According to FTDES, when a factory shuts down suddenly and women workers are let go, they are deprived of their right to health care coverage. Currently the National Fund for Insurance in Tunisia only provides health care coverage when people are employed. Laid off women face many difficulties in accessing public health care as a result of their unemployment and financial difficulties, as they are obliged to cover their personal medical costs. The result is that many women choose not to receive medical treatment when needed as they cannot afford medical care.

In July 2019 FTDES published a report on the topic, aiming to help organize a solidarity campaign for women working in the textile sector who have been arbitrarily dismissed as a result of a sudden shutdown of a factory. According to the report, during the period between 2005 and 2017 nearly 100 thousand workers have been laid off in the textile sector. Women comprise 84% of these workers and most of them have spent over 20 years working.

FTDES stresses that depriving women health care coverage is a clear violation of their right to health. Thus, FTDES urges that all those who have been arbitrarily laid off continue to benefit from the National Fund for Insurance.

For the campaign, FTDES produced a film about women working in the textile sector. The film is in Arabic and has French subtitles.

For more information in Arabic https://ftdes.net/ar/droits-a-la-sante-pour-les-ouvrieres-du-textile-victimes-de-licenciement-abusif/

In French: https://ftdes.net/droits-a-la-sante-pour-les-ouvrieres-du-textile-victimes-de-licenciement-abusif/