HENAN HARIT

Morocco- Like all women in the world, Moroccan women face different forms of violence in their lives. This causes women to suffer from psychological problems. According to the 2019 data shared by the High Commission for Planning (Moroccan national statistics office), the percentage of female workers who were subject to at least one type of violence was 83%. 49% of women were subjected to psychological violence while 34% of women were subjected to economic discrimination.

According to the figures, at least 15% of women were subjected to violence in the workplace, the percentage of divorced women, who were subjected to violence in the workplace was 22%. 21% of women were wage workers. 19% of women and girls (15-34 years old) living in rural areas were subjected to violence. 41% of women were subjected to violence by their employers while 29% of them were subjected to violence by their co-workers. The lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic increased the number of women, who were subjected to violence. According to official figures, 2,000 women became unemployed in the first quarter of 2020. According to the data issued by the High Commission for Planning, 29.7 percent of women were recorded as unemployed in Morocco in the second half of 2020.

She faced difficulties for objecting to being harassed  

28-year-old A.A., who worked for a textile company in Dar El Beïda, a suburb of Algeria, is only one of the thousands of women, who have been subjected to violence in the workplace. “I faced many difficulties in my workplace. I was subjected to harassment and psychological violence. I was fired because I objected to being harassed. Many women told me that they were subjected to economic violence, even harassed by directors. I didn’t believe them until one of the directors tried to harass me. I was told, ‘If you accept me, I will increase your salary.’ I told him that I would never do what he asked me and that I just wanted to work. Then, I was fired for not accepting his offer. I still suffer from this trauma,” she told us.

Call for the ratification of C190

Najwa Lekhaila, a member of the Moroccan Workers' Union (UMT) and the Uni Africa Executive Committee, urges the Moroccan government to ratify ILO Convention No. 190. “If the government ratifies this convention, Morocco will improve. The convention will help to create a better workplace environment. It will provide the necessary protection for women workers to achieve their goals,” Najwa Lekhaila said that the previous government had promised to ratify the contract but it didn’t. She urged the new government to ratify the convention. “If the ratification of the convention will be a great opportunity to end the ongoing violations in the workplace,” she said.

“Working women are subjected to many forms of violence”

Stating that working women are subjected to many forms of violence such as physical, economic, and sexual violence, Najwa Lekhaila said, “We need more efforts and laws to eliminate violence in all sectors. Working men are also subjected to violence in the workplace but women are affected by the workplace violence more.”