Ei-iE

EI welcomes this initiative by affiliates to initiate international work to fight child labour. “Teachers are uniquely placed to make sure that every child’s right to education, and furthermore to quality education, is respected worldwide,” EI General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen said.

EI’s national affiliates, the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU), the South Africa National Professional Teachers’ Organisation (NAPTOSA), and the Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysersunie(SAOU), joined by the Professional Educators Union and the National Teachers’ Union, have taken the fight to reinstate a collective agreement to court. The agreement, signed between teacher unions...

EI organised a workshop enabling representatives of 16 member organisations in the Pacific to campaign for the promotion of trade union rights in the region. The workshop was hosted in Fiji on 19-22 August with the support of the Workers Group of the International Labour Organisation (ILO-ACTRAV).

Over 40 representatives from 11 countries in the Pacific gathered for two days in Fiji to outline their unions’ plans to grow the women’s networks and promote equality in education and unions in the region. The women’s network meeting was held prior to the triennial conference of the Council of...

EI has sent out a briefing note on the Trade in International Services Agreement (TISA) to its affiliates, informing them about these trade negotiations that threaten to liberalise public services like healthcare and education.

The National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP), one of EI’s national affiliates, has explained that the extra work of collecting and providing data to the Education Ministry and the new teaching system hinder quality teaching.

On 13 August, the Joint Action Front (JAF) led a national mass protest to save public education in Nigeria. EI’s national affiliate, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), is a JAF member.

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT), one of EI’s national affiliates, has called on the US House of Representatives to adopt legislation initiating a comprehensive immigration reform.

The New Zealand Educational Institute-Te Riu Roa (NZEI Te Riu Roa), one of EI’s national affiliates, has said it would support the election of a Labour-led Government, as the latter would repeal the current legislation favouring privately led schools (charter schools) and focus on improving the status and situation of...

An EI delegation is attending regional meetings on labour standards in Fiji. EI representatives are holding talks with teachers' representatives from the Fijian Teachers' Association and the Fiji Teacher Union who deplored the clampdown on union rights since the 2006 coup.

The Greek Federation of Secondary State School Teachers (OLME), one of EI’s national affiliates, has organised an online petition to protest against the planned suspension and dismissal of Greek teachers.

Two of EI’s affiliates, the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT) and the National Union of Teachers (NUT), have criticised a survey released by the UK polling organisation, Populus.

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) will continue to invest in upgrading the skills and knowledge of its members while urging the government to organise quality in-service training for all teachers in the country. GNAT has derived many benefits from its cooperation on teachers’ professional development training with the...

On 9 August, International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, EI reaffirms the right of indigenous children to education and the right of indigenous peoples to self-determination, also to define education systems and quality education integrating their own perspectives on culture, beliefs, values and languages.

The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), one of EI’s affiliates in the country, has informed EI that the teachers’ national strike which started on 25 June was called off on 17 July. The education union urged teachers to report back to their schools the next day. Unfortunately, however, the...

A teachers’ union seminar in Stockholm has focused on the need for teacher unionists to include, represent, and defend lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) teachers and students.

EI encourages member organisations and education stakeholders worldwide to review and provide feedback to the Draft Business Engagement Framework for Education and Learning released by the UN Global Compact, UNICEF, UNESCO and the Office of the UN Special Envoy for Global Education. The Framework is intended to be a practical...

EI is relieved to learn that the death sentence imposed on Iranian teacher Abdolreza Ghanbari has been reduced to 15 years’ detention and exile by the Tehran Revolutionary Court.