Mobilizing within and beyond the Labor Union: A Case of Precarious Workers’ Collective Actions in North Africa

Drawing on a qualitative analysis of a group of mobilized precarious workers in Tunisia’s public sector, the author asks how workers’ collective actions are shaped by and, at the same time, can act upon labor unions’ responses to them. Findings suggest that unions can enable and simultaneously constrain precarious workers’ collective actions. More important, workers learn from their interactions with the union, and this learning process can contribute to innovations in workers’ mobilizing structure and repertoire of actions. The Tunisian case contributes to the debate on the relationship between precarious workers and institutionalized actors as well as to the study of mobilized precarious workers by elucidating the ways in which the workers’ embedded and innovative agency plays out within and beyond a well-established labor union

Securitization of the Unemployed and Counter-Conductive Resistance in Tunisia

Open Access offered under Sage Agreement Acknowledgements I would like to thank the editor of Security Dialogue, the anonymous reviewers, Andrea Teti, Emma Dolan, Chayuth Chamnanseth, Gabriela Garcia Anderson and Beth Wallace for their constructive comments on earlier versions of this article. Funding The author received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Combined chemotherapy and intra-arterial chemotherapy of retinoblastoma

PurposeRetinoblastoma (RB) is the most common primary malignant intraocular tumor in children. Although systemic chemotherapy has been the primary treatment, intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) represents a new treatment option. Here, we performed alternate systemic chemotherapy and IAC and retrospectively reviewed the efficacy and safety of this approach.MethodsPatients diagnosed with intraocular RB between January 2000 and December 2011 at Severance Children's Hospital, Yonsei University, were reviewed. Before February 2010, the primary treatment for RB was chemotherapy (non-IAC/CTX). Since February 2010, the primary treatment for RB has been IAC (IAC/CTX). External beam radiotherapy or high-dose chemotherapy were used as "last resort" treatments just prior to enucleation at the time of progression or recurrence during primary treatment. Enucleation-free survival (EFS) and progression-free survival were assessed.ResultsWe examined 19 patients (median age, 11.9 months; range, 1.4 to 75.6 months) with a sum of 25 eyes, of which, 60.0% were at advanced Reese Ellsworth (RE) stages. The enucleation rate was 33.3% at early RE stages and 81.8% at advanced RE stages (P=0.028). At 36 months, EFS was significantly higher in the IAC/CTX group than in the non-IAC/CTX group (100% vs. 40.0%, P=0.016). All 5 patients treated with IAC achieved eye preservation, although most patients were at advanced RE stages (IV-V).ConclusionDespite the limitation of a small sample size, our work shows that an alternative combined approach using IAC and CTX may be safe and effective for eye preservation in advanced RB

Transitional Justice for Whom? : Contention over Human Rights and Justice in Tunisia

open access via T&F agreementPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Driven out: women’s employment, the transport sector and social reproduction in Grand Tunis

Employment in the transport sector has historically proven to be male-dominated, even in countries like Tunisia which have evidenced public policy narratives and legal employment frameworks promoting gender equality. This paper presented the findings from a grounded research study examining women’s employment experiences in blue-collar roles in the transport sector of Greater Tunis. Drawing on extensive interviews with both female and male transport employees, as well as field observations, it demonstrates that familiar sectoral narratives of transport work as ‘too rough, too hard and too dirty for women’ can be understood through the broader political economy of the country and the transport sector within it. The research evidences the sustained and mutually-constitutive relationship between patriarchal cultural norms and capital’s development through successive periods of populist welfarism and neo-liberal governance, indicating that progressive advances in women's employment rights are not socio-economically embedded and suggesting that future research would be usefully informed by feminist social reproduction theory

Soil moisture effects on leaf litter decomposition and soil carbon dioxide efflux in wetland and upland forests

This study examined, first, the response of litter decomposition and soil CO2 efflux (RS) to different soil moisture conditions and, second, the application of various litter decomposition functions in a wetland and upland forest dominated by Japanese alder. One upland site (US) and three wetland sites—a drained site (DS), poorly drained site (PDS), and surface saturated site (SSS)—were selected based on their variation in soil moisture conditions. Litter mass loss, as determined by a 4-yr litter bag incubation, was applied to Olson’s simple exponential function, Berg’s asymptotic function, and the rational function. The litter decomposition rate constant (yr−1), which was commonly obtained by the simple exponential function, was highest in PDS (1.181), followed by SSS (0.950), DS (0.922), and US (0.528). The limit value of the litter mass loss, as determined by the asymptotic function was higher in DS (91.7%) and PDS (89.0%) than in SSS (76.9%) and US (70.5%). The rational function provided the most precise fitting of the litter mass loss pattern with few parameters. Periodic saturation and the higher leaf N content in PDS may enhance litter decomposition compared to constant saturation or drained conditions. The RS (mg C m−2 h−1) values, periodically measured using a portable infrared gas analyzer, were ranked in the order US (12.6–355.1) = DS (7.1–324.0) > PDS (5.5–220.9) > SSS (0.0–153.8). More hydric conditions probably reduced the vegetation biomass (in contribution to autotrophic RS) and aerobic microbial activities (in contribution to heterotrophic RS). The RS temperature dependency (Q10) was little affected by soil moisture conditions, ranging from 2.48 to 2.69. It is concluded that the litter decomposition rate and RS were highest under periodic saturation and under lower soil moisture conditions, respectively.Scopu

Short-term effects of warming treatment and precipitation manipulation on the ecophysiological responses of pinus densiflora seedlings

The aim of this study was to investigate the short-term effects of warming treatment and precipitation manipulation on the growth, photosynthetic rate, and chlorophyll content of Pinus densiflora seedlings based on a climate change scenario in Korea. Two year old P. densiflora seedlings were planted in a nursery in April 2013. The air temperature of warmed plots (W) was set to increase by 3 °C compared to control plots (C) using an infrared heater in May 2013. The three precipitation manipulations consisted of decreased precipitation using transparent panels (–30%; P–), increased precipitation using pumps and drip irrigation (+30%; P+), and a control (0%; P0). Root collar diameter and seedling height of P. densiflora were measured in April and October 2013. Net photosynthetic rate and total chlorophyll contents were measured from June to October 2013. Warming treatment increased the growth of root collar diameter, and the interaction effect of the warming treatment and precipitation manipulation on it was also significant. In contrast, no significant effects were found for the growth of seedling height. These results demonstrate that warming treatment might affect the growth of root collar diameter and seedling height differently. It was also found that WP– treatment decreased net photosynthetic rates. This pattern might be due to the soil moisture availability, as soil moisture content was lowest in the WP– treatment and net photosynthetic rate was elevated with increasing soil moisture content. Meanwhile, warming treatment increased the total chlorophyll content. The results suggest that chlorophyll synthesis was promoted by a temperature increase in the leaves. The current study, which simulated a climate change environment in an open field, provides important information for the prediction of the ecophysiological effects of changes in temperature and precipitation on P. densiflora seedlings in Korea.This research was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) that is funded by the Ministry of Education (2013R1A1A2012242) and by the Korea Forest Service (S111115L030100).Scopu

Screen time, mealtime media use, and dietary behaviors in Korean preschoolers: a cross-sectional study

Objectives: Screen time refers to the time spent using screen media, such as televisions, smartphones, computers, or tablets. Excessive exposure to screen media has been reported to negatively impact young children’s health and development, including overweight, short sleep duration, and language delays. This study examined the association of screen time and mealtime media use with dietary behaviors among preschool children. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted on parents of children aged three to five years using the online questionnaires of the Nutrition Quotient for Preschoolers (NQ-P) and the Dietary Screening Test (DST). Data from 261 children’s parents were analyzed. Results: Of the 261 children, 96.9% used screen media, 55.6% used screen media for two hours or more daily, and 30.7% were exposed to screen media during meals. The NQ-P scores were significantly lower in the children with longer screen time and mealtime media use. Children who used screen media for two hours or more and those exposed to screen media during meals consumed kimchi less frequently and confectionery and sugar-sweetened beverages more frequently than children who used less than two hours and were not exposed to screen media during meals. In addition, they were more likely to be picky about food, refuse to eat, and less likely to feed themselves than children with shorter screen time and no mealtime media use. Conclusions: This study reported an association between unhealthy dietary behaviors, feeding difficulties, and screen time and mealtime media use among preschool children. Further research should explore effective strategies for reducing children’s screen time

Improving young women’s access to safe mobility in a low-income area of Tunis: Challenges and opportunities pre- and post-Covid

This paper explores the everyday transport and mobility challenges faced by young women living in one poor peripheral neighborhood of a North African city, Tunis. Discussion spans a two-year period covering conditions prior to and within the COVID-19 pandemic. Using an innovative participatory methodology, young women from the study neighborhood were trained to work as peer researchers in collaboration with the academic team. We examine women’s everyday mobility experiences, with particular reference to safety and the risk-avoidance practices they employ. In the context of the pandemic we then consider the impact of measures such as social distancing, lockdowns, and curfews on women’s travel safety. In the early phases of the pandemic women’s concerns around harassment seem to have been over-ridden by stronger concerns regarding disease contagion but also reflect reduced incidence of harassment due to limits imposed on transport usage and over-crowding. We conclude with reflections regarding the interventions needed for more positive post-pandemic travel scenarios, including priority seating, and boarding for women; expanded transport services into low-income areas; also improved surveillance on transport, at transport hubs and on the streets

Ability of the modified NUTRIC score to predict mortality in patients requiring short-term prolonged acute mechanical ventilation: a retrospective cohort study

Background: The modified NUTRIC (nutritional risk in the critically ill) score has been reported to predict clinical outcomes in critically ill patients. However, the applicability of this score may differ between patients undergoing short-term mechanical ventilation (STMV, < 96 h) and those undergoing prolonged acute mechanical ventilation (PAMV, ⩾96 h), as PAMV patients typically experience significantly higher morbidity and mortality. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the predictive ability of modified NUTRIC score for predicting 28-day mortality in patients receiving STMV and PAMV. Design: Retrospective single-center cohort study. Methods: We enrolled patients who received mechanical ventilation (MV) on the day of admission to the intensive care unit (ICU) from 1 December 2015 to 30 November 2020. Modified NUTRIC scores were calculated based on the clinical data of each patient at ICU admission. Results: The study population comprised 464 patients, including 319 (68.8%) men with a mean age of 69.7 years. Among these patients, 132 (28.4%) received STMV and 332 (71.6%) received PAMV. The overall 28-day mortality rate was 26.7%, which was significantly higher in STMV patients than in PAMV patients (37.9% versus 22.3%, p  < 0.001). Evaluation of the predictive performance of the modified NUTRIC score for 28-day mortality revealed areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves of 0.672 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.627–0.714] for total patients, 0.819 (95% CI, 0.742–0.880) for STMV patients, and 0.595 (95% CI, 0.540–0.648) for PAMV patients. The best overall cutoff value was 5 in total, STMV, and PAMV patients. This cutoff value was a significant predictor of 28-day mortality based on the Cox proportional hazard model for total [hazards ratio (HR): 2.681; 95% CI: 1.683–4.269] and STMV (HR: 5.725; 95% CI: 2.057–15.931) patients, but not for PAMV patients. Conclusion: The modified NUTRIC score is more effective in predicting 28-day mortality in patients undergoing STMV than in those undergoing PAMV