Morocco's aviation sector personnel declare 10-day work halt in protest of unfulfilled promises

Moroccan engineers and safety personnel in the aviation sector have decided to initiate a 10-day work stoppage on December 13, at 8 a.m. This decisive action serves as a protest against the non-implementation of any clauses in the social echelon agreement, signed over 9 months ago.

In a symbolic act of dissatisfaction, union members also plan to wear badges during the Minister of Transport and Logistics visit on the inauguration day of the new “ManagAir” radar system. 

Responding to the National Union’s call at the Moroccan Labor Union’s headquarters last Sunday, a general assembly convened, resulting in the decision to hold a protest sit-in in front of the Ministry of Economic Integration in Rabat on Wednesday, November 29.

During the assembly, the union’s spokesperson said that despite the social echelon agreement being signed on February 13 this year, none of its provisions have been implemented after more than 9 months, except for the general salary increase.

While reiterating its commitment to ongoing aviation projects, the union announced the suspension of work on the “GMAO” application starting from 8 a.m. today. 

This decision is attributed to the application’s interference with the work of aviation safety engineers and professionals. The decision will remain effective until a dialogue is opened to address the technical disruptions of this application.

Warning against any illegal provocations or pressures from the administration, the union declared that such actions will prompt an immediate strike and withdrawal from all directorates and control towers upon the National Union’s call. 

In response to the situation, the union urgently called for a meeting with the General Administration of the National Airports Office to resume dialogue and ensure that the administration will fulfill its commitments to preserve the signed agreement in the aviation sector.

The union said that, in the new project, the administration has opted to eliminate the levels of technical qualification. These levels are outlined in the training manual which was approved by the Civil Aviation Directorate in 2015.

The union also criticized the administration’s failure to activate B.A. degrees for aviation safety engineers and professionals, surpassing the deadline set in October 2023 according to the social peace agreement.

Highlighting additional breaches of the social echelon agreement, the union mentioned the administration’s withdrawal from the EXPERTS CNS training project and its reduction of beneficiaries and training duration for other safety equipment. 

The union expressed additional concerns including the freezing of the current technical qualification system for more than a year and the failure to appoint specialized technicians in airport equipment at several airports, particularly Tangier-Ibn Battuta Airport.