The National Education Coordination has urged for the continuation of protests through a nationwide strike on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, accompanied by a national march from the Parliament to the Ministry of Education in Rabat and a partial sit-in in front of the ministry on Tuesday, according to a statement released on November, 5th.
Regarding the strike strategies, the Coordination said that for teachers in rural areas, they should not report to their institutions as a means of participating in the strike, while those in urban areas, on the other hand, should enter their institutions but leave after 15 minutes.
Primary school teachers are given the flexibility to determine the duration of their protests and continue with protest actions during break times.
For secondary schools, and other educational institutions, specific morning and evening hours have been designated for protests, while elementary schools conduct protest actions during morning and evening breaks.
The coordination called for a withdrawal from institution boards, boycotting all tasks outside the teachers’ scope, abstaining from school championships, extracurricular activities, freezing activities within clubs, refraining from class visits by inspectors, boycotting training programs, including those related to what’s known as the pioneering school initiative, and refusing to work for extended hours or take on additional tasks.
The Coordination warned against infringing on the right to strike by deducting the wages of strikers, as this is a red line that could lead to the suspension of classes nationwide.
In this regard, Abdellah Ghmimet, the secretary general of the National Federation of Education (FNE), said that “teachers remain resolute in their determination,” emphasizing that it’s no longer about financial gain but a matter of their dignity.
He noted that teachers are now facing salary deductions for each day of the strike, “but they persist in their strikes, saying that they have little left to lose, having already sacrificed their dignity as teachers and the integrity of the public school system.”
Ghmimet emphasized that teachers were not only seeking financial improvements but also moral and democratic changes that would benefit educational institutions, students, and the entire professional environment.
“Our struggle is not solely about financial gains, as the current fundamental system, if left unaltered, poses a significant threat to the acquired rights and dignity of teachers,” said Ghmimet.
The coordination’s statement urged all its regional and local components to mobilize collectively to ensure the success of the protest program and called on all education workers, both active and retired, to participate actively in this protest program.
This decision comes after what the statement called the “heroic battle” on October 5, a nationwide strike from October 24 to 26, and protest gatherings and marches at educational offices. These events had substantial participation from educators defending their dignity, legitimate demands, the right to strike, and the call for system reform.
Despite these efforts, the statement noted, the government and the Ministry of Education continue to ignore the demands of teachers, both active and retired, and engage in what the coordination sees as insincere dialogue.
The aim of the continued protests is to regain respect for education workers and to embody the principle of the unified field action of all education workers.