Ei-iE

Health and well-being hub Education International’s resource center

  1. Ensuring safety and health at work in a changing climate
  2. Webinar: The influence of school leadership and governance on teachers’ mental health and wellbeing in Africa
  3. Teacher and education support personnel well-being : Vital for education

Caring for educators, caring for our communities

Welcome to the Education International hub dedicated to supporting the health and well-being of teachers and education support personnel (ESP) around the world. Developed in partnership with MGEN, this hub reflects our collective commitment to place education workers’ health and well-being at the centre of the global education agenda, as outlined in our 10th World Congress resolution “ Teacher and ESP well-being and mental health: vital for quality education”.

Whether you are looking for good practices, strategies, or inspiration, this hub is designed to empower unions and education communities to foster healthier, more supportive environments for teachers and education support personnel worldwide.

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Featured topics

  1. Mental health
  2. Pandemics and epidemics
  3. Physical health
  4. Safety
  5. Violence and harassment
  6. Women’s psychological and physical health
  7. Working conditions
  8. Workload

Showing All 194 Resources

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Educator wellbeing guide: A quick guide to community support strategies for school staff

Guides

The Educator Wellbeing Guide by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) is a practical resource focused on community support strategies designed to support the mental health and resilience of school staff, especially those working in crisis-affected settings. It emphasizes that educator wellbeing is essential not only for teaching quality but also for personal fulfillment. The guide addresses structural challenges such as workload, student behavior, and accountability, and introduces community-based support strategies alongside self-help tools. It also explores the impacts of vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue, offering ways to recognize and respond to these issues to foster healthier, more supportive school environments.

Download resource in English
Publisher
International Rescue Committee
Year of publication
2024
Topics
Cross-cutting resource Mental health Physical health Workload
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders
Resource type
Downloadable file

INEE Minimum Standards - Standard 9: Protection and Wellbeing

Guides

The INEE Minimum Standards offer a compilation of guidances that emphasize the importance of creating safe, secure, and nurturing learning environments that support the psychosocial and physical wellbeing of learners, teachers, and education support personnel. It outlines key actions such as promoting positive classroom management, preventing school-related gender-based violence, ensuring safe school infrastructure, and training staff on protection mechanisms and referrals. The standard also highlights the role of community participation and risk reduction strategies in safeguarding education spaces, especially in insecure or crisis-affected areas.

Open resource in English
Publisher
Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)
Year of publication
2024
Topics
Cross-cutting resource Mental health Safety Violence and harassment Women’s psychological and physical health
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders
Resource type
Online ressource

Preventing and addressing violence and harassment in the world of work through occupational safety and health measures

Research

The report explores the global prevalence of workplace violence and harassment, affecting over one in five workers. It emphasizes the urgent need for integrated strategies, such as the ILO Violence and Harassment Convention (No. 190), national legal frameworks, and occupational safety and health protocols, to effectively combat these issues. The report also examines how evolving work conditions, including digitalization and blurred work-life boundaries, intensify these challenges, and highlights the role of collective bargaining and policy innovation in fostering safer, more respectful workplaces

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Publisher
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Year of publication
2024
Topics
Physical health Safety Violence and harassment
Available in
English French
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders Union representatives
Resource type
Downloadable file

Key findings on climate change and occupational safety and health

Research

The video presents the main insights from the ILO report "Ensuring safety and health at work in a changing climate", highlighting how climate change, driven largely by human activities like fossil fuel use, is increasingly affecting workers' health and safety. The video emphasizes the urgent need for policies and practices that protect workers from climate-related risks such as extreme heat, air pollution, and natural disasters.

Open resource in English
Publisher
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Year of publication
2024
Topics
Climate change Physical health Safety
Available in
English French Spanish, Castilian
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders Union representatives
Resource type
Video

Ensuring safety and health at work in a changing climate

Research

Climate change is already having serious impacts on the safety and health of workers in all regions of the world. Workers are among those most exposed to climate change hazards yet frequently have no choice but to continue working, even if conditions are dangerous. Global occupational safety and health protections have struggled to keep up with the evolving risks from climate change, resulting in worker mortality and morbidity. This report presents critical evidence related to the impacts of climate change on OSH, to bring attention to the global health threat workers are currently facing

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Publisher
International Labour Organization (ILO)
Year of publication
2024
Topics
Climate change Physical health Safety
Available in
English French
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders Union representatives
Resource type
Downloadable file

Better understanding and action for workers with endometriosis

Guides

The guide aims to support women suffering from endometriosis in the workplace. It provides detailed information on the challenges these women face and offers practical solutions for employers and managers. The guide includes recommendations such as additional leave days, flexible teleworking options, and creating a restful environment at work. It also emphasizes the importance of collective bargaining to improve working conditions and highlights the need for awareness and understanding of endometriosis among all workplace stakeholders.

Open resource in French
Publisher
Union nationale des syndicats autonomes - Education (UNSA Education)
Country
France
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Women’s psychological and physical health
Available in
French
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders
Resource type
Web page

Guiding victims of workplace accidents and their families

Guides

The guide aims to support victims of workplace accidents and their families. It provides comprehensive information on the steps to take and rights available following an accident. The guide includes ten detailed fact sheets covering topics such as defining a workplace accident, the consequences for employment contracts, preparing for a return to work, and obtaining compensation. It also addresses the involvement of various actors, the role of the criminal judge, and support for families in case of a fatal accident.

Open resource in French
Publisher
Union nationale des syndicats autonomes - Education (UNSA Education) Direction Générale du Travail (DGT)
Country
France
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Safety Working conditions
Available in
French
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders Researchers
Resource type
Web page

Suffering at work: an underestimated issue?

Policy briefs and Policies

The article discusses the significant issue of workplace suffering, highlighting that 43% of workers report experiencing some form of suffering, with 7% facing severe distress. It emphasizes the urgent need for organizations to address physical and psychosocial risks, and calls for the recognition of work-related mental illnesses as occupational diseases. The UNSA stresses the importance of better information for workers about their rights and the necessity for companies to create healthier and safer working environments.

Open resource in French
Publisher
Union nationale des syndicats autonomes - Education (UNSA Education)
Country
France
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Mental health Physical health Safety Violence and harassment
Available in
French
Categories of staff
Teachers
Resource type
Web page

The time that isn't enough

Research

"Tiden som inte räcker till": The research report resents statistics on how teachers' working hours are allocated across various tasks. It examines the distribution of time spent on teaching, substituting, mentoring, preparation, and follow-up work during an average week for primary, secondary, and adult education teachers. The report highlights the challenges teachers face in managing their workload effectively.

Download resource in Swedish
Publisher
Swedish Teachers' Union (STU)
Country
Sweden
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Workload
Available in
Swedish
Categories of staff
Teachers
Resource type
Downloadable file

Working on greater social safety

Guides

The article discusses strategies for improving social safety in educational institutions. It highlights the importance of understanding team dynamics, seeking external help for team problems, addressing conflicts proactively, and ensuring good leadership. The article also emphasizes the need for clear rules of conduct, effective personnel policies, and a transparent complaints structure to create a safe and pleasant working environment for all staff members.

Open resource in English Open resource in Dutch
Publisher
Algemene Onderwijsbond (AOb)
Country
Netherlands
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Mental health Safety Violence and harassment Working conditions
Available in
English Dutch
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders
Resource type
Web page

The mental health crisis among faculty and college staff

Opinion/commentary

The article highlights the growing mental health crisis among faculty and college staff, emphasizing that they experience high rates of anxiety, depression, and stress, similar to students. It underscores the importance of on-campus mental health support, reasonable workloads, respectful work environments, and fair pay. The article also points out that the mental health challenges faced by faculty and staff are often overlooked, despite their significant impact on overall well-being and job performance.

Open resource in English
Publisher
National Education Association (NEA)
Country
United States of America
Year of publication
2024
Region
North America and the Caribbean
Topics
Mental health
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel Researchers Union representatives
Level of education
Higher education and research
Resource type
Web page

Health and safety in schools and colleges

Guides

This guide on health and safety in schools and colleges provides essential information for ensuring a safe educational environment. It outlines the responsibilities of employers under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, including risk assessments and the implementation of safety measures. The guide covers various topics such as accident reporting, administration of medicines, asbestos management, fire safety, mental health, and work-related stress. It emphasizes the importance of a written health and safety policy and the need for collaboration with union safety representatives to maintain a safe and healthy workplace for all staff and students.

Open resource in English
Publisher
National Education Union (NEU)
Country
United Kingdom
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Mental health Physical health Safety
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders
Resource type
Web page

Guidance and checklist: Implementing the recommendations of the workload reduction taskforce

Guides

The guidance and checklist provides support for implementing NEU's workload reduction taskforce's recommendations in educational workplaces. It highlights the importance of reducing excessive working hours and administrative tasks that do not require professional skills, aiming to improve teacher and leader wellbeing. The document includes an updated list of admin and clerical tasks that should NOT be performed by teachers, emphasizes the need for collaboration with union reps, and outlines steps for schools to ensure that workload reductions do not increase the burden on support staff.

Download resource in English
Publisher
National Education Union (NEU)
Country
United Kingdom
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Workload
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel School leaders Union representatives
Resource type
Downloadable file

State of education 2024: Workload and wellbeing

Research

The article discusses some of the results of the State of Education 2024 survey where over 8,000 National Education Union members participated. The survey asked teachers and support staff about their personal experience of workload and the forces affecting their wellbeing. The survey reveals that the majority of teachers and support staff in England and Wales are struggling with unmanageable workloads, leading to significant stress and poor work-life balance. Key factors related to stress include government-driven factors such as inspections, insufficient staffing levels, and lack of resources.

Open resource in English
Publisher
National Education Union (NEU)
Country
United Kingdom
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Mental health Salaries and remuneration Working conditions Workload
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers Education support personnel
Resource type
Web page

Workload, wellbeing and Covid-19

Guides

The page outlines five key principles for workforce policy and practice in schools to address the challenges exacerbated by the pandemic. It emphasizes the need for schools to allow teachers and school leaders to focus on their core responsibilities, support them amidst unprecedented pressures, and prioritize their wellbeing and mental health. The page also highlights the importance of tackling excessive workload drivers, such as unnecessary administrative tasks, and ensuring that teachers' and school leaders' contractual and statutory entitlements are respected to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Open resource in English
Publisher
NASUWT - The Teachers' Union
Country
United Kingdom
Year of publication
2024
Region
Europe
Topics
Mental health Pandemics and epidemics Workload
Available in
English
Categories of staff
Teachers
Resource type
Web page