Ei-iE

Education International (EI) and the European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE) is calling on all member organisations to take action to help prevent legislative changes for teachers in Ukraine scheduled for 2 December. These changes threaten the status of the teaching profession and violate international labour standards, according to the Trade Union of Education and Science Workers of Ukraine (TUESWU).

Representing almost one million professionals in Ukraine’s education and science sectors, and a member of Education International, TUESWU has informed EI and ETUCE of proposals included in the conclusions of the Parliament Committee on Education, Science and Innovation to the Draft Law on the State Budget for 2026. These measures would:

• Terminate all permanent employment contracts for teachers by 31 August 2026.
• Force mandatory transition to fixed-term contracts (1-5 years) while dismissing those who refuse.
• Increase teachers’ weekly workload, thereby resulting in the dismissal of over 70,000 teachers.
• Reduce remuneration and allowances, including seniority and professional title bonuses.
• Amend core education laws through the Budget Law, a practice prohibited by the Constitution of Ukraine.

These measures violate International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions 87, 98, and 151, and Ukraine’s commitments under UNESCO, ILO, and the Council of Europe. If adopted, they will devastate the teaching profession, cause mass dismissals, deteriorate education quality, harm millions of students, and undermine Ukraine’s post-war recovery.

Time is critical as the budget adoption is scheduled for 2 December 2025.

EI and ETUCE urge all member organisations to take the following actions:

• Write immediately to the Chair of the Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) of Ukraine demanding withdrawal of these amendments. You can use the attached template letter. Your letter should be sent to EI which will forward it.
• Copy the letter to the Ukraine embassy in your country or to the main permanent missions of Ukraine in Budapest, Geneva or Washington.
• Express solidarity publicly and support the TUESWU Statement, using the hashtags: #НІ_звуженню_прав (“NO to restriction of rights”) and ТАК_три_мінімальні (“YES three minimums”).
• Share this appeal with your networks.

For more information on how to take part to this solidarity action and support Ukraine teachers, please contact the EI headoffice.

EI, ETUCE and their member organisations stand with teachers and their union in Ukraine at this critical juncture. Amid the ongoing war, safeguarding quality education is essential for Ukraine’s future.

To follow EI’s solidarity work on Ukraine and other countries facing emergency situations, please visit Solidarity in emergencies (ei-ie.org).