Ei-iE

On 25 April, EI joined Chilean education unions on a massive march in favour of public education, taking place in the country´s capital, Santiago. Over 50.000 people called for the fundamental right to quality education to be guaranteed and funded by the state.

Consistent with its policy that schools must be safe and secure and education should advance human rights principles by promoting inclusiveness, EI has joined major anti-bullying campaigners in the US to create awareness in schools and communities about bullying and harassment prevention.

EI has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with World Teachers Video Network (WTVN) to jointly reflect and promote EI policies and principles. WTVN is a global TV platform aiming at raising the standards of teaching and learning by sharing good practice through broadcast-quality video.

This week, millions of teachers, students and education advocates around the world join forces in calling on public authorities and development partners to ensure that all young children have access to quality early childhood education (ECE). This call is made during and after the Global Action Week (GAW) for Education,...

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB) hold their 2012 Spring Meetings in Washington, from 20-22 April. Global Unions, which includes EI, will be represented to bring the voice of workers to this key event.

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 Spanish government has informed the country’s devolved Autonomous Regions about new ‘reform measures’ for public education to be passed by royal decree on Friday. They involve a €3 billion cut in the education budget which will necessitate an increase in teaching hours, the dismissal of 100,000 teaching staff and,...

EI General Secretary, Fred van Leeuwen, took part in the national congress of one of the largest French EI members, the Syndicat national des enseignements de second degré (SNES-FSU). This congress, held in Reims, from 2-6 April, focused on “(Re)constructing secondary education for all”.

The EI national affiliate, the Education, Science and Culture Trade Union of Slovenia (ESTUS), has called for strike action by its members on 18 April. The trade union is opposed to an amendment to the 2012 national budget adopted by the Government which includes significant cuts in the budget for...

EI General Secretary, Fred van Leeuwen, took part in the national congress of one of the largest French EI member, UNSA-Education. The topic of the UNSA Education congress, “Taking up the challenges of the education system”, served as the core issue for the discussions held from 28-30 March 2012 in...

EI supports the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) demand that countries should honour their commitments to provide development assistance. The ITUC demand is set out in its statement to the thirteenth session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD XIII), to be held from 21-26 April in...

At their annual conferences, two of EI’s affiliates in the United Kingdom, the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and the National Association of Schoolmasters’ Union and Women Teachers (NASUWT), have voted in favour of further industrial action, including strikes. The organisations profoundly disagree with the Cameron Government’s policy on public...

In the current political and economic climate, the teaching profession is coming under new and ever-increasing pressures. A recent survey commissioned by one of EI’s affiliates in UK, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), showed teachers’ morale had worsened over the last two years.

EI representatives have been interviewed on radio recently, informing and raising awareness among the general public about the impact of the economic crisis on education and on educators’ training and professional development.

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...

Four EI affiliates, the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), the Fédération nationale des enseignantes et enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN), the Fédération québecoise des professeures et professeurs d’université (FQPPU), and the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) have lent their support to the strike by students in Quebec against a...

Together with 30 other partners, including the International Council on Education for Teaching, UNESCO and higher education institutions, EI is working to build a global network that brings together education and public policy leaders to develop communication across national boundaries on initiatives to improve teaching quality and excellence.

The General Secretary of EI, Fred van Leeuwen, sent a letter of protest to the President of Benin, denouncing “the way in which the government of Benin has been disregarding trade unions and their members rights for some months now.” He also sent a letter of support directly from EI...