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During the major mobilisations staged over a period of three months by the teaching profession in Morocco, the SNE-CDT education union actively listened to workers’ demands, organised grassroots consultations, and built a shared trade union position. A national trade union renewal plan was also launched, setting out specific aims such as increasing membership, setting up local union committees, and organising field visits.

Effective communication strategies

According to Younes Firachine, General Secretary of the SNE-CDT, “the success in terms of the length of the mobilisation – three months – lies in a combination of structural and human factors leading up to the strike action. We spent a long time preparing the ground. There was, of course, legitimacy to the action, because the strike wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction but a response to the deep-seated discontent felt throughout the country.”

The union leader underlined that clear communication and peaceful resistance were crucial. “We favoured non-violent actions, sit-ins, well-managed marches, peaceful demonstrations of all kinds. But, all that aside, it was the moral fibre of the teachers in the movement that was decisive,” he explained.

“We actively listened to the demands, organised grassroots consultations, and built a shared trade union position. We also, of course, played a strategic role with the rank-and-file members, the local and regional branches, to ensure the continuity of the strike,” he added.

Historic agreements

The three months of strike action ended with the signing of two historic agreements, marking a decisive step in teachers’ collective struggle. These agreements, dated 10 and 26 December 2023, led to pay rises upwards of 1,500 dirhams (150 euros) and a new unified status for teachers on fixed-term and permanent contracts.

Trade union renewal

The strike was also a moment of collective introspection for the SNE-CDT, highlighting internal weaknesses and the need to reinvent the union’s role. The union leader explained: “We realised that the union could no longer limit itself to reacting to crises; it had to become a player in social and educational transformation, as well as on the ethical front.”

A national union renewal plan was therefore launched in February 2024, setting out specific objectives such as increasing membership and creating local union committees.

This “foundational event”, according to Younes Firachine, brought together members from each of the country’s 12 provinces “to reformulate our common vision and our course of action. We set up dynamic local teams comprising women activists, young teachers, experienced activists, male and female, all of whom acted as catalysts in their regions.”

The union also organised regular field trips. The SNE-CDT representatives went to schools, including the most remote, to talk, listen to, and convince their colleagues of the benefits of trade unionism.

“We have also modernised our communication tools, using podcasts and videos and posting on social media to reach a wider audience,” Firachine added.

Promising results

The SNE-CDT’s efforts have paid off, with the union achieving a 50% increase in membership since the end of 2023. “For us, the 2023 strike was a turning point, a moment of truth, but it was not an end in itself. The important thing is what we have built: a revitalised union that is more representative, more responsive, more in touch with the reality on the ground and, of course, resolutely focused on the future of public education. We built on the momentum generated by the three months of strike action. We were ready for union renewal, with concrete action plans, well-planned, well-thought-out, and quantified objectives. And we’ve achieved results that we would never have dreamed of”, Firachine concluded.