Moroccan Contractual Teachers To Protest in February, March

Rabat – Morocco’s Coordination of Contractual Teachers has called for nationwide protests in upcoming days amid ongoing negotiations between the Ministry of National Education and unions on the status of contractual teachers.

In a press release published on Saturday, the coordination denounced the government’s “destructive schemes in the public education sector,” urging the ministry to “integrate contractual sectors in the public sectors.”

The statement also rejected “temporary fixes” introduced by the ministry and called for collective action to “defend free education and the right of Moroccan sons and daughters to have a stable job in the public sector.”

For the 11th anniversary of the February 20 movement, the Coordination of Contractual Teachers announced a series of national demonstrations, including sit-ins on February 24. The sit-ins will take place within schools during recess. The coordination instructed the teachers to wear red armbands to signify the rejection of some ongoing legal procedures against contractual teachers.

From February 28 to March 6, the organization plans to carry out a one-week national strike along with a march in Rabat on March 2, 3, and 4.

Additionally, the coordination is set to organize other national, regional, and local strikes from March 21 to 23 to denounce wage cuts, explains the statement. Details on the protests are yet to be announced.

The national demonstrations will take place along with a set of boycotts covering the Massar platform for high schoolers’ grades, inspectors’ visits, and other issues. These measures result from a meeting of the coordination’s national assembly that took place on February 8-9 in Guelmim. The next meeting is scheduled for the upcoming school break in Khenifra.

The struggle of contractual teachers in Morocco for full integration in the public sector dates back to 2016 when the government allowed teacher recruitment with renewable contracts instead of long-term guaranteed contracts. Currently, there are more than 50,000 contractual teachers with lower job security, benefits, and salaries in Morocco.

Since 2016, the contractual teachers have called for similar rights and benefits as their peers in the public sector. They organized several protests and sit-ins at the national, regional, and local levels to voice their discontent with the situation.

In 2019, the Moroccan government decided to cut the salaries of a group of contractual teachers who participated in the protests. Some wage cuts reached MAD 1500, the coordination noted.

Morocco’s Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch stated today that the government will have a meeting with unions in the education sector on Thursday. The meeting is part of the country’s endorsement of social dialogue between the government and different public and private stakeholders in various vital sectors.