| Birth Date: | 15 October 1890 |
| Birth Place: | El Hamma, Tunisia |
| Death Place: | Saudi Arabia |
| Nationality: | Tunisian |
| Occupation: | Political activist |
Mohamed Ali El Hammi (Arabic: محمد علي الحامي; 15 October 1890 – May 10, 1928) was an early twentieth-century Tunisian labor organizer during the era of the French protectorate over Tunisia. He is deemed as the father of Tunisian syndicalism.[1]
He was born in El Hamma, Gabès, Tunisia. He moved to Tunis at age 8 when his mother died. He began his professional life as a personal driver for the Hungarian consul in Tunis. He also worked as a porter before obtaining his driving license in 1908. He then left for Germany and studied economics and political science at the University of Berlin.[2]
He founded the Confédération générale des travailleurs tunisiens (General Confederation of Tunisian Workers) in 1924, a year after returning to the country.[3] [4] He led strikes and formed regional unions across Tunisia.[5] He was a friend and contemporary of Tahar Haddad.
He was arrested and exiled by the French in 1925.[6]
On May 10, 1928, he died in a mysterious car crash in Saudi Arabia. His remains were repatriated to Tunisia on April 6, 1968.[7]