Abdessalem Jrad

Abdessalem Jrad

Born on January 23, 1937 in Kerkennah, Sfax, Abdessalem Jrad is a prominent Tunisian unionist leader.

Jrad’s involvement with the unions began early. During the 1960s, he became the Secretary General of the Transportation Union in Tunis and Deputy Secretary General of the National Federation of Transportation (FNT).

In 1975, he was elected as Secretary General of the FNT. Three years later, Jrad was arrested and sent to prison, along with the majority of UGTT (Tunisian General Labor Union) leaders, for organizing a general strike.

Jrad’s career first transcended national boundaries in 1976, when he was elected as Deputy Secretary General of the Arab Labor Union of Transportation.

In 1980, Jrad was reelected as Secretary General of the FNT, and was awarded his first official position within the UGTT in 1983. He began as a member of the executive bureau of UGTT, and later became the Deputy Secretary General, managing all interior procedures.

However, it was not long until Jrad ran into trouble with the law again. In 1985, Jrad was dismissed from work, placed under house arrest, and eventually imprisoned.

In 1991, Jrad was appointed as a member of the Council of the International Confederation of Arab Unions (Conseil Central de la Confidération Internationale des Syndicats Arabes or CISA).

In September 2000, he became Secretary General of UGTT, after the displacement of Ismail Sahbani.

In 2006, Jrad was elected as a member of the General Assembly and the Executive Bureau of the International Confederation of Unions.

Jrad was honored by former president Ben Ali in the presidential palace in 2009. Two months later, the UGTT declared their support for Ben Ali’s candidacy in the presidential elections. Jrad was the last political figure to meet with the ousted dictator, on January 13th, 2011, only one day prior to the former president’s departure.

Since the January 14th, Jrad has been criticized for forcing the UGTT’s into national politics. It has been claimed that the UGTT has attempted to impose its influence as an organized political force in post-revolutionary Tunisia.

Abd Raouf Ayedi, a lawyer and a Vice Secretary General of the center left party CPR (Congress for the Republic) along with 42 other lawyers raised charges against Abdessalem Jrad, and the Court of First Instance in Tunis declared a travel ban against him. Jrad was charged for corruption and involvement in cases of Ben Ali’s abuse of power. However, some members of the UGTT showed dissatisfaction with the decision and threatened to start general strikes. As a result, the judge presiding over the case was forced to lift his travel restriction order.

Abdessalem Jrad is married and a father of six children.