ΟΛΜΕ

http://www.suteba.org.ar/solidaridad-del-suteba-y-la-ctera-con-los-docentes-griegos-11316.html#

To: International Organisations and Trade Unions

Athens, 17/09/2013

Dear Colleagues,

As you have already been informed, secondary education teachers have started rolling strikes from September 16.

The government?troika (EU-ECB-IMF) is destroying public schools inGreeceand is degrading education.

Teacher Trade Unions and workers are kindly requested to support teachers in strike through:

a)      Resolutions,

b)      Financial contributions to OLME solidarity fund in the following Bank account.

ALPHA Bank

Account Number. : 114-00-2002-005457

IBAN: GR31 0140 1140 1140 0200 2005 457

BIC: CRBAGRAAXXX

Branch : LEKKA (114)

For the E.B of OLME

The President                                                                                 Secretary General

You may download the related file in pdf format … here

OLME

GREEK FEDERATION

OF SECONDARY EDUCATION

STATE SCHOOL TEACHERS

2, Kornarou & Ermou Str.

Athens(10563)

Tel: 0030 210 3230073-3221255

Fax: 0030 210 3311338-3227382

www.olme.gr

E-mail: olme@otenet.gr, interolme@yahoo.gr

To: International Organisations and Trade Unions

Athens, 10 September 2013

Press Release

Greek teachers? strikes as of September 16^th 2013.

OLME is launching five?days rolling strike as of September 16^th following the decision of the teachers? general assemblies. At the end of each 5 days strike the teachers? general assemblies will take stock of the situation and then decide on the course of the strike action.

The situation in public schools is dramatic:

• There are 16,000 fewer teachers in secondary education meaning 20% reduction since June 2013.
• 102 Vocational Education Schools are closing down
• 2,500 Vocational Education Teachers are being suspended-just a step before dismissals.
• In 2009 there was 33% reduction of spending on education which is expected to reach 47% in 2016.
• There is a compulsory transfer of 5,000 teachers to primary education and administration posts.

The government has passed a new law on education without a dialogue establishing a harsh, examination-centered system in all forms/grades of upper secondary education forcing students to seek private tuition outside school and leading to school dropouts. The government proceeds to:

• The privatization of a  part of Vocational Education
• The introduction of apprenticeship as a form of minor/under-age employment replacing education process.

OLME intends to create a Solidarity Fund to support teachers in strike.

We would appreciate your support.

Τhe E.B of OLME

You may download the related file in pdf format … here

Education International
Internationale de l’?ducation
Internacional de la Educaci?n

Education International,
HeadOffice|5 bd du Roi Albert II|1210 Brussels |Belgium
Tel.:+32 2 224 06 11 | Fax: +32 2 224 06 06 | http://www.ei-ie.org

TO ALL EI MEMBER ORGANISATIONS

Brussels, 12 August 2013

Urgent Action Appeal ? Greece

Act Now to Save Public Education in Greece

Dear colleagues,

Education International (EI) and the European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE), EI?s European region, are calling on all their member organisations to take action now in support of Public Education in Greece.

The Greek Federation of Secondary State School Teachers (OLME), one of EI?s member organisations in Greece, has launched an online petition that has already generated over 4,000 signatures since 8 August.

We call on you to take action now. Click here to access and sign the petition on Avaaz?s Community Petitions website!

We also encourage you to give visibility to the petition by recommending it on your website and/or Facebook account.

Greek teachers need your support!

Background

The unprecedented austerity measures imposed to Greece have tragic consequences for education and society as a whole. The Greek government is destroying the welfare state and democracy to comply with the demands of the troika – the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Under a proposed new law, the Greek government would condemn over 2,500 teachers (including OLME?s president, Themis Kotsifakis) to an eight-month suspension on just 75 per cent of their basic statutory salary prior to their automatic dismissal. In addition, 5,000 secondary education teachers will be transferred to primary education and 2,000 more to administration. The proposed layoffs would add to the 10,000 non-permanent contracts lost earlier in primary and secondary education.

Vocational lyceums and schools will be particularly affected by teacher dismissals through the so-called process of ?sudden death?. Under the new law, the authorities would destroy three sectors of Greek Vocational Education, namely the arts, cosmetics and healthcare tracks. This means that in September 20,000 students will be left without the vocational lyceums and schools of their choice. The Government would then concede a large part of the country?s Vocational Secondary Education to the private sector.

Further measures, including teacher suspensions and dismissals are expected for September.

Greek teachers? demands are:

- that no teacher be suspended or dismissed ;

- that no student be left without the public vocational education of his/her choice ;

- that the government stop its policy of suspensions, dismissals and cut offs.

EI Solidarity with Greek teachers

EI and ETUCE stand in solidarity and give their full support to the Greek teachers and their member organisations ? OLME, DOE (Greek Primary Teachers Federation) and POSDEP (Hellenic Federation of University Teachers’ Associations) ? in their struggle to preserve public schools and vocational education.

We recall that a good quality public education system should be considered as the Greek government?s most important tool to weather the economic crisis and secure a sustainable future. Therefore, we urge the Greek government to abandon its efforts to dismiss thousands of teachers from the vocational education sector.

Thank you for your support and solidarity with our Greek colleagues.

In Solidarity,

Fred van Leeuwen                                                                                                                               Martin R?mer

General Secretary,EI                                                                                                                         European Director, ETUCE

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Support to Greek teachers from Union of Education Norway

Prime Minister,

Minister of Education

Union of Education Norway (UEN), organizing more than 150,000 members ranging from kindergarten to university level, is as Greek Federation of Secondary Education State School Teachers (OLME) affiliates to Education International (EI), the Global Union Federation representing 30 million teachers and education workers worldwide.

First of all Union of Education Norway will send its regrets and shows hereby the concern about the severe economic situation that your country is living through these days. We are afraid that the austerity cuts imposed to Greece are effectively destroying the welfare state with tragic consequences for education and society as a whole. The heavy wage and pension reductions, the expected mass lay-offs of teachers, the education budget cuts and other measures will probably cause severe problems in the future of the Greeks if not changes are made.  Austerity has undermined trust in joint solutions at European level. Time has come to restore public confidence by reversing austerity and boosting public investment, including investment in education.

Nevertheless Union of Education Norway gives its full support to the Greek teachers and their union in their call to maintain their right to strike. Greek teachers fight to maintain their rights in the workplace for the quality of education. A good quality education system should be considered as the Government of Greece?s most important tool to handle the economic struggle and to secure the welfare of its citizen in the future.

Union of Education Norway believes that recommendations from international institutions such as the IMF, World Bank, European Union or development banks, should take into account the obligations of States concerning International Labour Organization Conventions. Collective agreements must be respected and any economic stabilization measures, particularly in relation to labour standards and wages, are only admissible on condition that they have been subject to prior consultations with workers? organizations and are applied as an exceptional measure and limited in time.

Union of Education Norway therefore urges the Government of Greece to safeguard the basic civil and democratic rights of its people. And we call on you Prime Minister and Education Minister to strengthen democracy by listening to the social partners through improved institutional social dialogue.

Yours sincerely,

Copy:

OLME

Education International

You may download the related file on pdf format … here

You may download the Letter of  ETUCE to the President of the European Commission Jos? Manuel Barroso… here

You may download the related file (in french) in pdf format … here

You may download the Letter of Educational International to the Prime Minister in pdf format … here