In this piece, a member of the TEFL Workers’ Union writes on the possibility of ELT teachers to oppose war and genocide – and the BC teachers in Italy who are leading the way! The UK has arguably been the epicentre of the Palestine solidarity campaign since the launch of Israel’s genocide against the people … Read more
Did you know that you should continue to accrue annual leave even if you’re off sick? There’s a good chance your school doesn’t. The TEFL Workers’ Union is proud to release annual leave guidance specifically tailored to zero-hours workers in the language teaching industry. The guidance includes: 1. Types of annual leave: banking systems v. … Read more
Chants and whistles rang out on Camden High Street as TEFL Workers’ Union members made noise and showed their solidarity with Emek. Today saw the launch of the TEFL Workers’ Union public campaign to support Emek, a Turkish teacher who alleges she was unfairly dismissed as a result of “native speakerism” at the TopUp Learning … Read more
Teachers at Meridian English have gone months without payment – and without communication from CEO Neil Pick. Here the teachers tell their story. The first the teachers knew about it, it was because their pay didn’t arrive. Then, through vague, sporadic, and often conflicting messages from Meridian CEO Neil Pick, the teachers learned that the … Read more
Emek worked at TopUp Learning / TTI English school in Camden in London, a dedicated teacher who was well-liked by students and workmates alike. But her employment recently came to an end, something she believes is due to the fact her first language is Turkish. Below she lays out her allegations about how she was … Read more
Why native-speakerism in language teaching has had its day. Native-speakerism – the idea that those who can claim to have a language as their mother tongue are automatically better at teaching it and more legitimate models of what counts as good language use – has been around in English language teaching for a long time. … Read more