A pearl strike had been called since January and paralyzed the administration every two weeks. This was a broken promise from the government, which has committed to restoring social benefits that have been suppressed since 2016 due to the fall in oil prices.
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Today, the difference continues behind the scenes of a social pact, a first in five years of negotiations.
The ten-page document is being studied at the office of the union protest platform. The goal of this pact that the government proposes is written in black and white: to calm and create a climate of trust. between unions and government.
And trust is needed for Barka Michel. The union has been at the heart of the negotiations since 2016, the date for the reduction of salaried employees’ salaries: “We will not tie our hands to a three-year pact without seeing what benefits this pact can give us.
We want to look at the pact to see if there are things to add, if there are things to remove. We must be sure that a month’s delay can enable the government to move forward. In any case, we are used to agreements that are signed and not respected. ”
The demands of the unions are not new. While the payment of wage advances since 2017 has been made, one main requirement remains: payment of transport costs. An envelope representing 24 billion CFA francs according to the unions.
A new meeting is planned for next week to discuss possible changes to the social pact. The platform will suspend the strike until April 30 to give the negotiations a chance without increasing the pressure.
