Education and the crisis in Central and Eastern Europe

1
Education and the crisis in Central and Eastern
Europe

• Guntars Catlaks
• Coordinator Research
• Education International
• CEE Roundtable Novotel Centrum Budapest,
  22-23 Oct 2009

2
Purpose of presentation

• Provide a preliminary analysis of EI follow-up
  survey on impact of crisis on education
• Set the findings in context to other EI research
  and further documentation
• Compare the impact of the crisis on CEE and
  Western European education sectors

3
Presentation structure

1. Survey design and purpose
2. Response rate
3. Cuts in Education
4. Salaries and non-salary benefits
5. Municipal level
6. School level measures
7. Stimulus packages and ODA
8. Two cases Latvia and Ireland
9. Unions response and actions
10. Way forward

4
Context

• Online update of impact of crisis on education
  worldwide
• Follows EI January 2009 survey, which collated
  information from 40 countries worldwide
• Based on assumption that impact now is felt
  worldwide
• Tries to assess its forms more specifically
• First results used in EI High Level Seminar in
  Warsaw, 2-4 September 2009
• Deadline was 15 September 2009
• Contributions continue to arrive

5
Response

• Organizations from 36 countries filled on-line
  survey
• 27 from Europe
• 3 from Latin America
• 2 from Asia Pacific
• 2 from Africa
• 2 from North America/Caribbean
• More paper questionnaires were submitted by EI
  Latin American regional office
• Case study from Ireland

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Cuts in investment in Education (1)

• Many middle- and high-income countries
  significantly affected by the crisis, especially
  in CEE (UNESCO 2009)
• Eastern Europe - countries have implemented
  budget cuts Latvia, Estonia, Moldova, Romania,
  Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia, Hungary
• VET and higher education more likely subject to
  budget cuts than primary education (UNESCO 2009)

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Cuts in investment in Education (2)

• Soft areas of education are most affected
  language courses, arts, programmes for
  integration of minority groups, counseling
• Delayed investment in non-salary expenditure
  (e.g. Infrastructural investments in Poland)
• Teacher salary cuts (Lithuania, Bosnia
  Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia) and
  salary freezes (Romania, Serbia)
• Reductions in non-salary benefits (Estonia,
  Poland)

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Main findings from follow-up survey (1)
redundancies, salaries and non-salary benefits

• In 7 countries there are cuts in salaries
  between 3 and 20 in all levels, VET and higher
  education being most affected
• In 22 countries disability insurance has been cut
  or reduced
• In 4 countries retirement expenditures and
  pension schemes has been reduced
• In 12 countries teachers have been laid-off
  because of crisis

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Main findings from follow-up survey (2)
increased role of municipalities

• There is trend to devolve funding
  responsibilities for education on municipalities
  and/or private entities
• In 7 countries (Romania, Estonia, Lithuania,
  Republic of Moldova, Poland) municipalities
  received greater funding responsibilities
• In 3 countries private entities increased their
  role
• In 2 countries both municipalities and private
  entities are increasing their share in education
  funding as a result of crisis policies

10
Main findings from follow-up survey (3) school
level measures

• Schools, in particular small public schools in
  rural areas, being closed, merged, or reorganised
  (Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Russia),
  in particular primary, secondary and VET schools
• W. Europe public primary, secondary and VET
  schools similarly facing closure, merging and
  reorganisation (France, Iceland, Ireland, Spain,
  Sweden, U.K.)
• Class sizes expanded (Lithuania, Estonia)
• In Croatia, tuition fees have been
  applied/increased

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Main findings from follow-up survey (4)
stimulus packages and ODA

• CEE countries have stimulus packages (e.g.
  Romania), but not focused on education
• Latvia has announced reductions in ODA (UNESCO
  2009)
• Macedonia receives ODA, not reduced

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Main findings from follow-up survey (5) unions
response and actions

• In Croatia and Estonia, unions involved in (at
  least formal) negotiations with governments as a
  follow-up on the economic crisis
• Unions involved with other NGOs and
  organizations in the context of economic crisis
  in their countries (Croatia - ongoing
  relationships among unions to provide public
  awareness of the economic crisis, Poland - with
  other unions, Romania - collaboration among
  unions primarily on policy issues, Estonia -
  Rectors' Conference Estonian Cooperation
  Assembly, Lithuania - all four trade unions have
  established in July 2008 a coordinating centre
  and cooperate by solving different questions)

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Case Latvia

• Latvia faces one of the hardest budget cuts in
  education
• 6 000 teachers were laid-off as from September
  2009 (out of 35 000 in total)
• Teacher salaries have been cut between 15 and
  30
• More than 50 primary and secondary schools
  announced to be closed in 2010 (out of 800 in
  total)
• Many VET institutions closed or reorganized
• Civil servants salaries were cut by 15 in
  December 2008 and further 10 in June 2009
• Pensions were slashed by 10 and by 70 for
  working pensioners

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Case Latvia budget cuts 2010 ()
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Human face of crisis Latvia

• We are living in pessimism and uncertainty. Im
  not sure what we will do next. I have started to
  look for a new job. Started thinking if I should
  change my profession and move away. Baiba
  Cadore (29) teacher

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Case Ireland (1)

• Irelands economic boom imploded in 2008
• The response of the State to this crisis is still
  emerging and largely consists of providing
  significant financial support to the banking
  sector and drastically reducing government
  spending
• The government has committed itself to reducing
  public expenditure by over 13 billion euro over
  the next three years
• The attack on the role of Trade Unions, and the
  broad equality agenda of the labour movement
• The dominant message is that everyone had a good
  time during the last decade, so we must all take
  the pain.

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Case Ireland (2)

• Slash of financial supports for schools,
  including
• Financing for equipment for Science laboratories,
  school libraries and textbooks
• Programmes to prevent early school leaving
• Financing for school choirs
• Financing for vocationally-oriented programmes
  and other less academic programmes which required
  additional teachers
• Financing for migrant children needs

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Case Ireland (3)

• In terms of pay for all public sector salaries,
  the government imposed
• A pension levy of an average 7.5 a pay cut by
  another name
• Implemented a pay pause for 11 months
• Non-payment of 3.5 pay increase in September
  2009, agreed under social partnership
• Non-payment of 2.5 pay increase in Spring 2010,
  agreed under social partnership
• New additional 1 income levy on all salaries,
  public and private sector

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Case Ireland (4) Unions

• Drawn the attention of society to the dangers
  posed to the quality of education system by the
  financial cutbacks
• Focused on the injustice being done to young
  people who are denied basic tools for learning
  such as library books
• Formed platforms or alliances with parents and
  school management authorities
• Alliances with other trade unions, and organizing
  huge public meetings of members around such
  alliances
• Sustained campaign called There is a Better
  Fairer Way which is uniting the public and
  private sector workers by arguing for a more just
  taxation system

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Main successes

• Increased awareness of unions presence among
  members and society
• Avoidance or reduction of salary cuts and
  lay-offs
• Increased direct subsidies to municipalities for
  education
• Inflationary salary increments
• Implementation of social justice more earnings
  more cuts!
• Commitment to wage increases in near future
• Greater financial autonomy at school level
• Increased impact on government. Alliances with
  other unions and civil society

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Main failures

• Reductions and cuts of education budgets,
  salaries and lay-offs of staff
• Closure of public schools in rural areas
• Worsening of working conditions for remaining
  teachers
• Increasing non-satisfaction of parents
• Inability to get full information on spending and
  stimulus
• Low degree of media attention and objective
  analysis
• Lack of engagement with government
• Resistance of other unions to commit to joint
  platform of demands and actions

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Way forward 9 steps

• Continue to lobby governments for education
  spending
• Encourage municipalities to invest in education
• Launch campaigns dont let the children pay for
  crisis
• Engage in negotiations on salaries and working
  conditions at all levels of government
• Monitor effects of financial cuts in education in
  society
• Inform members and society about impacts of
  crisis
• Form alliances with other trade unions and
  federations on budget issues
• Organize protest activities at national and local
  level
• Use international solidarity as a multiplying
  force

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What is expected from EI

• Provide data and knowledge on how other countries
  are handling the crisis
• Spread our main demands worldwide that education
  and research must be seen as investments not
  costs
• Maintain and enforce global advocacy with
  international bodies such as EU, OECD, World
  Bank, IMF, UNESCO
• Help to organize seminars and conferences for
  members
• Give support in negotiations with governments
  provide economical arguments
• Organize international solidarity campaign

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• Thank you for your attention!
• Guntars Catlaks,
• Coordinator Research
• Education International
• guntars.catlaks_at_ei-ie.org