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Morocco's National Teachers' Assembly Persists in Urging Strikes as Dissatisfaction Lingers

Morocco's National Teachers' Assembly Persists in Urging Strikes as Dissatisfaction Lingers
Wednesday 03 January 2024 - 07:30
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Morocco's National Teachers' Assembly remains resolute in its call for continued strike actions, undeterred by the recent government announcement of a deal with five prominent teachers' unions. In a statement released on January 1, the Assembly urged educators to participate in a nationwide strike scheduled for December 3, 4, and 5, and encouraged their involvement in a march to be held in the capital city of Rabat.

Expressing profound discontent, the Assembly deemed the recent agreement between the government and the teachers' unions as "disgraceful." It further accused the centralized union practices of persistently undermining the teaching profession, eroding the motivation of its workforce, and casting doubts on their pivotal national roles. The Assembly criticized these practices for their potential to transform public education into a mere factory of servitude and shallowness.

Although signed on December 27, the agreement encompasses a broad spectrum of provisions aimed at enhancing the working conditions of professionals within the public education sector. However, the Assembly censured the unions for hastily endorsing the agreement, asserting that it serves as an attempt to mask their failures in safeguarding the interests of teaching staff and support personnel.

"They have resorted to disseminating disillusioning fallacies and illusory gains, which were swiftly exposed as a shameful reality, as the meager wages of the strikers continue to be subjected to arbitrary deductions," the statement read.

This call for strikes marks the latest episode in a series of industrial actions that commenced in October 2023. As the strikes persist, concerns mount regarding the potential loss of an entire academic year, disproportionately impacting students within the public school system, given the absence of participation from private school teachers.

Preliminary estimates indicate that approximately 30% of public school teachers have engaged in the strike. However, the exact number of participants in the ongoing strike remains uncertain, as the government has already announced a two-tranche salary increase in addition to the provisions outlined in the December 27 agreement.


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