Europe Academy project kick-off meeting on challenges for education professionals and trade unions in Europe

The objective of the meeting was to develop first draft elements for a manifest for dissemination on challenges in the teaching profession in Europe from a trade unionist perspective, which will be further informed by the project’s main symposium held in Portugal later this year in October together with representatives from CESI’s member trade union organisations in the education sector.

The project will, overall, inquire how European level instruments and programmes such as Education & Training (ET) 2020, the European Semester for economic (and social) policy coordination, the EU’s New Skills Agenda or the Eurydice network can help underpin and make the case for improved working conditions and professional development opportunities for teachers especially against the background of the European Education Area 2025.

It will seek answers to questions such as “How can teachers be equipped with the skills required for digital education?”, “How can teachers be supported in the integration of migrations in education systems?”, “Are salary levels adequate in the context of long working hours, increasing work intensification, and significant levels of psychosocial risks and even third party violence?” or “How to strengthen the reputation and positive public perception of the teaching profession and the work of workers?”

As a trade union organisation representing numerous teacher trade unions from across Europe, improving the support for the teaching profession at the EU level has been a long-standing topic of concern for CESI.

The project ‘Education professionals and trade unions in Europe’ is co-funded by the European Commission under the EU budget line for information and training measures for workers’ organisations.

Picture: CESI Europe Academy 2018 project kick-off workshop © CESI 2018