Morocco Bans Public School Teachers from Private Sector Overtime Amid Ongoing Strikes

This measure, perceived as a sanction following the ongoing strikes in the education sector, revokes all previously granted authorizations for the 2023/2024 school year as of December 20. Teachers will now only be able to work in their original establishments, putting an end to a common practice until now.

The effects of this decision are felt in a context of tension marked by 13 weeks of strikes, recalls the newspaper Assabah. This movement has resulted in the loss of 300 hours of teaching for seven million students spread across 12,000 establishments. As the first semester is coming to an end, the extent of the disruptions is considerable, with an estimated total loss of two billion and 100 million hours of teaching, a deficit that is difficult to make up.

In parallel, December 21 was marked by a demonstration of teachers in Rabat to maintain pressure on the government. They expressed their dissatisfaction with the December 10 agreement between the government and the unions, supposed to improve salaries but deemed unsatisfactory.