Rabat – The National Syndicate for Higher Education and Scientific Research (SNESUP) declared a two-day national strike on May 29-30 over “dignity, conditions and financial and psychological state,”in a statement published on Friday, May 17.
The decision to come out on strike following talks between the union and the Ministry of Education, where no mutual understanding regarding the demands university professors had raised could be reached.
According to the statement, SNESUP’s are petitioning the ministry for salary rises, which they say have been “frozen” for over two decades now, as well as placing vocational training highest on the list of priorities, besides granting what they called “academic freedom,” and “freedom of initiative.”
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The statement reads that during a meeting held on May 14, the Education Minister Said Amzazi said that their demands still require extra time for discussion within the government.
Denouncing the breakdown of dialogue, the union regarded this response as a retreat by the ministry, saying the need for longer time to put in place the agreements is a betrayal of the commitment forged between the government and the union.
It maintained that this change in policy impinges on the credibility of government, its intent to address wider issues of public affairs. It also blames the government for its disregard for the social issues at large, adding that all this poses a threat to the national stability.
The union is threatening to step up action through staging a series of protests, initiated by the May 29-30 national strike.
