# Trade unions in Sierra Leone

Trade unions in Sierra Leone first emerged in the period around World War I, with reports indicating that civil servants organised unions as early as 1912. The Railway Workers Union was founded in 1919. In the late 1930s, trade unions affiliated to the Youth League formed the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to coordinate actions within the labour movement. In 1940, trade unions were legalised. In 1946 tripartite bargaining councils were established that incorporated trade unions for minimum wage and sectoral bargaining with employers. The Sierra Leone Labour Congress (SLLC) was founded in 1976. Although the country's civil war at the end of the 20th Century had a devastating effect on the labour movement, unions played an important role in nonviolent resistance, launching a national strike in the immediate aftermath of the 1997 coup by the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council. Since the end of the civil war, trade unionism in the informal sector has grown.

## Existing unions

Collective Bargaining Agreements - Formal Sector (2022) :
| | Members | CBAs | CBA coverage |
| Artisans Public Works of Services Employees Union | 2,600 | 6 | 12,000 |
| Clerical Banking Insurance Accounting Petroleum Union | 3,010 | 7 | 15,000 |
| Construction Workers Union | 2,500 | 1 | 8,000 |
| Electricity Employees Union | 2,200 | 1 | 20,000 |
| Hotel Food Drinks Tobacco Entertainment Workers Unions | 580 | 2 | 14,000 |
| Union of Mass Media, Financial Institutions, Chemical Industries & General Workers | 1,500 | 2 | 13,000 |
| Maritime & Waterfront Workers Union | 1,500 | 2 | 13,000 |
| Municipal & General Government Employees Union | 1,000 | 2 | 3,000 |
| National Union of Civil Servants | 1,500 | 1 | 8,000 |
| National Union of Forestry & Agricultural Workers | 1,500 | 3 | 8,000 |
| Sierra Leone Fishermen's Union | 1,600 | 1 | 3,000 |
| Sierra Leone Dockworkers Union | 1,500 | 1 | 4,000 |
| Sierra Leone Health Services Union | 4,000 | 1 | 16,000 |
| Sierra Leone National Seamen's Union | 1,550 | 1 | 1,500 |
| Sierra Leone Teachers’ Union | 36,000 | 1 | 40,000 |
| Sierra Leone Union of Postal & Telecommuncations Employees Union | 1,054 | 1 | 2,500 |
| Sierra Leone Reporter Union | 450 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Union of Security, Watchmen & General Workers | 3,200 | 2 | 5,000 |
| Skilled & Manual Productive Workers Union | 810 | 4 | 1,300 |
| United Mine Workers Union | 1,602 | 1 | 6,000 |
| Union of Railway Plantation, Minerals, Industry & Construction | 300 | 1 | 1,000 |
| Sierra Leone Port Authority Senior Staff Association | 82 | – | – |
Collective Bargaining Agreements - Informal Sector (2022) :
| | Members | CBAs | CBA coverage |
| Indigenous Petty Traders Association | 55,000 | – | – |
| Indigenous Photographers’ Union | 1,000 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Artisanal Fishermen's Union | 17,106 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Traders Union | 105,000 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Musicians Union | 500 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Bike Riders Union | 120,000 | – | – |
| Motor Drivers & General Transport Workers Union | 50,000 | 1 | 1,000 |
| Union of Timber Factory Owners & Workers | 1,237 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Commercial Tricycle Riders Union | 700 | – | – |
| Sierra Leone Technicians Union | 700 | – | – |
| Home and General Workers Union | 1,500 | – | – |
| Omolankay Whellbarrow & Porters Union | 1,000 | – | – |