Ei-iE

EI, together with other Global Unions such as ITUC, ITF and PSI, are launching an online campaign in partnership with LabourStart to condemn governmental anti-union harassment tactics in Turkey. They invite their affiliates, affiliates' members and concerned citizens to take action now on LabourStart and send urgently protest messages to...

Representatives of 19 EI member organisations from Southern Africa, meeting in Johannesburg, condemned in the strongest terms the actions of the Swaziland Government in brutally attacking strikers and imprisoning many of them.

The Cambodian Independent Teachers’ Association (CITA), one of EI’s national affiliate, has condemned the fact that the Cambodian Confederation of Unions (CCU) has again been denied formal government recognition as a trade union confederation. Made up of seven unions and associations, the CCU represents more than 90,000 workers nationwide.

The head office of E?itim Sen, EI’s Turkish affiliate, was raided by police in Ankara early morning on 25 June, as well as the Confederation of Public Employees (KESK)’s offices. Nearly 70 unionists had their houses searched by the police and were taken into custody, including three E?itim Sen Executive...

The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU) has challenged the South Korean Government to eliminate Korean Standardised Testing. The KTU, an EI affiliate, argues that the measurement of a teacher’s worth should not rely on standardised testing.

Nine union members from Algerian administration workers’ union SNAPAP have been on hunger strike in Algiers since 6 May. The members of SNAPAP, an EI affiliate, are protesting against repeated human and trade union rights violations.

The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) called for a two-day strike action on 13 and 14 June to protest at the Swazi Government’s intention to reduce the wages of public employees.

The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) called for a two-day strike action on 13 and 14 June to protest at the Swazi Government’s intention to reduce the wages of public employees.

Fred van Leeuwen highlighted the crucial role of the trade union movement as “a cornerstone of any democratic system”, especially at a time when the global economic crisis is being used as a pretext for restricting the rights of workers in many countries worldwide.

Fred van Leeuwen called on the ILO to reassert its vital role in defending workers’ rights.

The International Organisation of Employers (IOE) has impeded the discussion of some of the worst cases of workers’ rights violations at the annual International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conference, held in Geneva from 30 May-15 June.

Senen Niño Avendaño, President of the Federación Colombiana de Educadores (FECODE) and a member of the EI Executive Board, together with two other leaders of the Colombian teachers’ union, has been refused an entry visa to Switzerland where they were to participate in the Conference of the International Labour Organisation...

Hundreds of thousands of public workers participated in a nationwide public sector strike in Turkey on 23 May, according to EI national affiliate E?itim Sen.

EI has learned that the Supreme Criminal Appeals Court has adjourned the case of Mahdi Issa Abu Dheeb and Jalila Al-Salman, from the Bahraini Teachers Association (BTA), to 30 May, and refused to release Mahdi on bail once more. Both were arrested after a crackdown by authorities following pro-democracy demonstrations.

In a meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister of Bahrain, Shaikh Khalid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, and the Minister of Labour, Jameel Humaidan, EI General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen has requested that the dissolution of the Bahraini Teachers’ Association (BTA) in 2011 be lifted and that its leaders be released...

At its 22nd congress held in Yamoussoukro between 1-4 April, the Syndicat National de l’Enseignement Secondaire de Côte D’Ivoire (SYNESCI) elected a new executive board. It also emphasised the crucial role of educators in national reconciliation and reconstruction.

The Botswana Teachers’ Union (BTU), one of EI’s national affiliates, is suing the Ministry of Education (MoE) for denying vacations to teachers’ when schools closed on 30 March. Shortly before schools closed, the MoE wrote to public school educators, notifying them to continue “with their normal duties” after pupils had...