Explainer: Why do teachers continue to protest?

Educational coordinations and other teachers are gearing up to stage marches in commiseration with their colleagues who were suspended due to their participation in the strikes against the fundamental system. 

Teachers continue their strikes against the fundamental system, persisting even after the agreement on December 26, 2023, which amended the fundamental system. 

Their protests reportedly stem from the Ministry’s refusal to listen to the striking bodies, negotiating with the unions instead, and its decisions regarding salary deductions and suspensions.

Three main groups have been spearheading the protests – the national coordination of the education sector, the coordination of high school teachers, and the unified coordination of assisting staff. 

So far, teachers have striked approximately 33 days in total since October 5th, 2023 protesting against the government’s failure to address fundamental issues within the education system. 

This marks the first wave of  major protests in the education sector since the signing of the January 18th agreement in 2022.

The government promised that it would resolve all issues within a year of the signing of the agreement. Two years have elapsed, and it has yet to tackle the concerns raised by the teaching workforce, according to the coordinations, leading to widespread dissatisfaction. 

The government has been negotiating with five unions, instead of the striking bodies leading the prorests. 

Coordinations say that unions are prioritizing their political agendas over the genuine concerns of those on strike, stating that the unions are not “independent entities, but adhere to the policies of their political parties.

These negotiations culminated in the introduction of the contentious fundamental system. 

The fundamental system was reportedly discussed in a hurry and discretely according to the teachers, and received approval on September 27th. 

Teachers rallied against the publication of the fundamental system in the official gazette due to identified issues. 

The government published the fundamental system in the official gazette in October further exacerbating tensions.

Several teachers acknowledge that the amended fundamental system is still much better than the initial version, however, the coordinations say that it’s still lacking and did not heed the striking teachers.

Notably, over 330,000 teachers are demanding fair treatment and equitable pay comparable to other ministries and public sector employees.

Educators say that teachers currently still have the lowest pay in the public sector, and their working conditions are dismal. 

Teachers also complain that the current government decided to raise the salary of freshly employed teachers by 2500dh starting with a salary of 7500DH instead of 5000dh, while it neglected the rest of the teaching force.

This disparity between the employees of the education sector and other public sectors fuels resentment among educators who perceive it as an unjustified injustice.

According to the educators, the government’s handling of the protests has also made the situation worse, leading to more protests.

The salary deductions, deemed drastic, have left some teachers with only 1500dh per month. 

The government’s insistence on salary deductions within the education sector, despite similar strikes in other sectors, has raised questions about fairness and legality.

Teachers highlight a clear difference in how employees in the public sector are treated. They point out instances where employees in the agriculture ministry had their salaries reduced for four years due to strikes, but the deductions were later refunded. 

On the other hand, employees in the higher education ministry received a salary increase of 3000 dh after their strikes, without any salary deductions.

They also point out that these salary deductions are based on a previous memorandum issued by Abdelilah Benkirane concerning the “unjustified absence from work,” and should not be applied in the case of a strike which is a constitutional right guaranteed by article 29.

Educators also point out the burden that has been lying on their shoulders. In one interview on Med Radio, Abdelouahab Shaimi, a teacher, drew attention to the prolonged existence of what’s called “commiseration hours,” established in 1986. This refers to extra hours teachers had to work without any compensation; six hours for teachers in primary schools, 4 hours in middle school and 3 hours for high schools.

“Commiseration hours,” introduced by the late King Hassan II during a challenging period in the country’s history, were initially meant to be a temporary measure. However, they are still in place today, forcing teachers to teach extra hours with no compensation.

Minister Faouzi Lekjaa said that removing these hours would necessitate hiring an additional 45,000 teachers.

Shaimi said that teachers have been teaching extra hours for years now, doing the work of 45.000 teachers, and still their working conditions have not improved. 

“Chakib Benmoussa, as the education minister, should be the first to make the working conditions better for his staff. Instead, he tells teachers that the meagre compensation for grading exam papers will improve their working conditions,” the teacher said. 

Shaimi clarified that if teachers have been using social dialogue as a method for two years without significant results, it is reasonable for them to consider alternative forms of protest, such as going on strike.

Despite criticism for their extended strike, teachers say that they have been waiting for two years now and this led to unproductive meetings and agreements. 

They are urging the ministry to meet and listen to their concerns, similar to how the health minister and other ministries engaged with coordinations, instead of rejecting it based on the coordinations’ “illegal status.”

“The ministry has made several illegal decisions such as freezing the fundamental system which is not governed by any legal framework, and salary deductions. However, it consistently avoids elistening to the coordinations, citing their ‘illegal status’ as a pretext, despite similar engagements occurring with other ministries” Shaimi explained.

The fundamental system is of paramount importance as it will govern the education system for the next two to three decades, and it will be difficult to change it in the near future.

As of today, there have been only three fundamental systems, introduced in 1967, 1985, 2003, and 2023.