Tripoli – May 7, 2025
More than 15,000 Libyan workers have been facing a severe crisis for years as a result of the collapse of state-owned companies and the withdrawal of hundreds of foreign firms after 2011, leaving them without wages or job security.
Workers from these companies organized protest actions in Tripoli, stressing that International Workers’ Day has turned into a “national day of mourning” for them, given the continued deterioration of their living conditions.
According to official estimates, 11,691 employees are registered in 64 troubled state-owned companies, while 3,619 workers have been affected by the withdrawal of 302 foreign firms. For years, these workers have been left with nothing but repeated promises and limited financial assistance that fails to meet basic needs—such as the aid packages announced by the rival governments in the east and west (100 million dinars from the Parliament-appointed government, and 35 million dinars from the Government of National Unity).
The General Federation of Libyan Trade Unions confirmed that it has been engaged in negotiations with the Government of National Unity for months in search of practical solutions, but noted that the decisions announced so far lack clarity and effective mechanisms to reintegrate workers into public institutions and guarantee their employment and financial rights.
Workers’ representatives are demanding to be transferred to public institutions and sectors, the settlement of their social security and financial status, and the payment of their overdue entitlements, in addition to addressing the cases of deceased, retired, or resigned workers.
The General Federation of Libyan Trade Unions warned against the continued neglect of this social crisis, calling for national responsibility toward thousands of families who have lived for years under the weight of unemployment and poverty—conditions that workers attribute to government inaction and the consequences of political conflict and institutional division.
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