UNION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS REMAIN ON STRIKE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABIDJAN 000560

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/24/2016
TAGS: ELAB PGOV ECON EFIN IV
SUBJECT: UNION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS REMAIN ON STRIKE

REF: A) ABIDJAN 428 B) ABIDJAN 549

Classified By: ECONOFF ERFANA DAR FOR REASON 1.4 (B AND D)


1. (U) Summary: The National University Teachers' Union
(Coordination Nationale des Enseignants du Superieur et des
Chercheurs, CNEC) has been on strike since March 14, with the
exception of a two-week truce from April 28 through May 12
while the union met with members of the Prime Minister's
office. As those discussions have failed and the Prime
Minister refuses to meet with CNEC, the union has voted to
continue the strike until its salary demands are met at least
in part. The strike has had a negative impact on the
academic year and may delay the annual Baccalaureate exam for
secondary students, which members of CNEC are expected to
administer and grade, in July. Without the "Bac," students
cannot enroll in universities here. End summary.


2. (U) Background: On May 16, EconOff and Econ FSN met with
CNEC leaders Dr. Flavien Traore and Dr. Mema Fatoumata to
discuss the causes of the strike, the status of the current
negotiations, the impact of the strike on the academic year
and CNEC's demands. CNEC was created ten months ago and
represents nearly 80 percent of university teachers in Cote
d,Ivoire. It does not have a political affiliation. CNEC
is the largest of three university professor unions. The
strike initially began March 14, 2006 and continued for six
weeks. On April 28, the strike was suspended following
mediation by Prime Minister Banny and President Gbagbo. On
May 12, CNEC voted to break off the truce and continue strike
action, alleging that the successive working sessions at the
Prime Minister's office had not yielded the expected results
and the seniority of the union's interlocutors had declined
from the level of Secretary General to that of technical
advisor.


3. (U) Current Reaction to Past Non-action: CNEC members are
concerned about low wages, which range from USD 600 per month
for an assistant lecturer to USD 1,500 per month for a full
professor. The university teachers have not had a
significant salary increase in the last twenty years. They
are now demanding salaries of USD 4,000 per month for an
assistant lecturer up to USD 8,000 per month for a full
professor. The union is also seeking an increase in research
bonuses and additional housing allowances.


4. (U) Government response: In response to these demands,
Minister of Labor Hubert Oulaye threatened to suspend the
wages of the striking professors. While subtracting the
wages of the days that the striking professors did not teach
is legal, complete suspension of wages is against Ivorian
law. In any event, Prime Minister Banny intervened and wages
have continued to be paid. Representatives of the Prime
Minister's office and CNEC debated on &the negotiation
framework8 through a two-week truce from April 28 to May 12.
Since talks with the Prime Minister's office did not lead to
concrete results, CNEC requested the Prime Minister himself
lead discussions. However, the Prime Minister has publicly
stated that he will not meet with them because his immediate
and consuming priorities are disarmament, identification and
the roadmap to elections, and that he believes CNEC is making
these intense demands now to distract him from those
priorities. Dr. Traore and Dr. Fatoumata were adamant that
CNEC will continue the strike until the Prime Minister's
office meets their demands or negotiates a compromise.


5. (U) Impact on the academic environment: CNEC is ready to
utilize the summer recess to make up the academic hours lost
due to the strike if an acceptable solution to their demands
is found. As university professors are also in charge of
administering and grading the Baccalaureate exam which will
be held in July, it is likely that this strike will
additionally affect secondary students scheduled to take the
exam. Without the Bac, students cannot enroll in
universities here.


6. (C) Comment: The complaints by both secondary (ref B) and
university teachers seem to be motivated by several factors:
the sense that now is the time to press for long-standing
demands for increases in salaries, allowances, and
subsidies, the creation of a new, more aggressive union in
CNEC, and possibly, as Banny has intimated, politically
motivated attempts to distract him from the peace process.
Banny has, in fact, little room for maneuver in responding to
these union demands since he lacks the cash to pay off the
teachers (and to a certain extent at least, the private
school owners, ref B) and is reluctant to make commitments on
future payments which the government cannot afford. If the
Bac examinations are significantly delayed and the
universities remain closed, it is likely that there will be a
strong negative reaction on the part of students and perhaps
their parents. Already, youth militia leaders have
threatened that university professors must resume teaching or

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face severe consequences. Adding out-of-school students to
out-of-work youth will not contribute to social stability
here.
Hooks