Strikes threaten school year, Morocco warns

Morocco is extending the school year to make up for time lost due to striking workers.

By Siham Ali for Magharebia in Rabat – 15/05/11

Morocco's school year will be extended by one week and mock exams will be canceled in some regions hit hard by striking teachers, Education Minister Ahmed Akhchichine told Channel 1 on Thursday (May 12th).

The announcement came after weeks of demonstrations by education workers demanding better pay and benefits. While catch-up lessons are set to be offered, the minister warned that some regions, including Souss-Massa Daraa and parts of the south, could face a wasted year because of the strikes.

The issue has been the focus of debate since May 3rd, when the minister first mentioned the possible lost year to Parliament.

"Pupils are paying a high price for the constant strikes that began during the last school year. Some schools have seen more than 48 days of industrial action," Akhchichine said. "We therefore need a law governing the right to go on strike and a law about the organization of trade unions. We must tackle the anarchy that currently prevails."

To allay tensions and respond to the teachers' demands, a draft agreement between the government and the unions is being prepared. It includes a provision for promotion without competition from public-sector workers who have degrees or doctorates. The proposal would also guarantee equal access for all public-sector teachers to higher positions.

But as strikes continue, parents grow anxious.

"I'm concerned about my children's education,” said Sellami Marouane, a father of two from Kenitra. “I can't understand how teachers can jeopardize the future of pupils to serve their own interests. There are other ways of protesting. What's more, many are not offering support classes to make up for the lost time," he said.

Teachers must rally to avoid the risk of a wasted year, Marouane added.

Mina Charfi, who lives in Beni Mellal and has three children enrolled in school, echoed his concerns, appealing for teachers and officials to find common ground.

"If I had the money, I would have sent my kids to a private school because with the way things are going in state schools, children are falling way behind," Charfi said.

But trade unionists said talk of a wasted year was an exaggeration. Abdesselam El Maati, the general secretary of the National Union of Education Workers which is affiliated with the National Labor Union of Morocco, said that teachers are the first to look out for pupils' interests and are ready to offer catch-up lessons to make up the lost ground.

"It's the ministry of education that deserves the blame first and foremost, because it has failed to deal with the problems in the sector by choosing not to address the grievances," El Maati said.

Source: Magharebia.
Link: http://www.magharebia.com/cocoon/awi/xhtml1/en_GB/features/awi/features/2011/05/15/feature-01.