We've moved to a new site!

Join us at publicservices.international - for all the latest news, resources and struggles from around the world.

We are no longer updating world-psi.org and it will be progressively phased out: all content will be migrated to the new site and old links will redirect eventually.

Education support and cultural workers

Public Services International affiliates represent hundreds of thousands of educational support workers throughout the world, many of who work without job security, fair compensation and benefits, or recognition that their services are vital to ensuring high quality public education for all citizens. The jobs of support workers are on the frontlines of the privatization and casualization struggle within the education sector, and many of these workers face challenges in pursuing their basic freedom to form a union and collectively bargain their terms and conditions of service. More information

UNISON condemns cuts to pay for teaching assistants

01 December 2015
Classroom assistant with a young pupil

UK affiliate UNISON has condemned threatened cuts to pay for teaching assistants in the North East of England. Staff could lose up to £5,000 a year under proposals to introduce term-time only contracts from September 2016.

US: Contract ratification boosts school employees

01 December 2015

The bus drivers, maintenance and food service workers – and all the other hard-working men and women of AFSMCE Florida Local 1184 who make America’s fourth-largest school system happen every day – have approved a new three-year contract with the Miami-Dade Public School system.

Corporate inroads on public education in the Philippines

26 November 2015
Children at school in the Philippines

Education International has published a new study on the extent of for-profit education in the Philippines. "Corporatised Education in the Philippines: Pearson, Ayala corporation, and the emergence of affordable private education systems" details how private secondary schools are growing at an alarming rate.

Virtual charter schools make big money but little progress

09 November 2015
Young child uses computer

Virtual charter schools are allowing private education corporations to make huge profits by cutting costs such as teacher salaries and student support. However results are consistently showing that the online-based education model is failing to provide the essential learning environment and support which young people need to excel.

NGO Consortium discusses strategy to fight privatization in education

04 November 2015
Everline Aketch and another participant at the meeting

Everline Aketch (NUEI, Uganda) and Sandra Vermuyten (PSI Head of Campaigns) represented PSI’s Education Support Network at a series of meetings in London with the NGO Consortium on Privatization in Education on 14-21 October.

South African university reverses outsourcing of services

04 November 2015
University of Cape Town

The University of Cape Town (UCT) signed an historic agreement with PSI affiliate the National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu) on 28 October to insource six of its outsourced services.

Representing support staff in a Ugandan school

26 October 2015
Everline Aketch

My name is Everline Aketch. I am a member of the National Union of Educational Institutions (NUEI) in Uganda. I joined Kisiki College Namutumba, a government supported secondary school in 2000 as an Assistant Bursar.

Also see