Page 6 - ELG2408 August Issue 491

NEWS .

TEFL workers take steps to map

unfair pay conditions

London’s TEFL workers can now easily compare pay and conditions
at schools across the capital. Tom Liebewitz from the TEFL Union reports.

ast May, the Union held
our first meeting to begin
mapping pay and conditions
Lfor TEFL workers across
London. We had an excellent
turnout, with inspiring speeches
from Hugh Dellar and teachers at
the British Council in Taiwan who
are preparing to strike.
Everyone who came filled out
our survey and here are some key
things we’ve learnt so far:
• Pay varies from £12.50 to
£29.36 per teaching hour
across schools.
• The median wage is £18.75.
• There isn’t a single school
among those we’ve surveyed
so far that pays for planning or
admin time, so the average real
wages range from £6.50 to £23,
with an average of £16.50/hr.
• Some schools pay for meetings
and CPD, but many don’t .
• When asked what the biggest can get to make this data the the industry as a whole; especially next steps. If you would like to get
issues were at their school, best it can be, so if you weren’t at with the more open-ended involved, read on to find out how:
the most common responses the event, and work in a London questions, it might be interesting
were low pay and lack of school, then go ahead and fill out to see what issues they raise and
paid planning and admin, our online survey here. to think about how the Union
summed up by one teacher If you were at the event but could support you all.
as ‘we should be paid for all you have some Union-curious
the hours we work, not just workmates who couldn’t be there, We have a
contact time’. then go ahead and fill it out again
with them as a way to get you all slogan: ‘Help the
We need as may responses from thinking and talking about the
as many different schools as we issues at your work and across work along’

On the map
Our digital map of London ELT
pay and conditions is now live and
can be accessed here.
At the moment, the map can
be a bit temperamental. This is
especially true if you try to access
it from your phone. If you’re
having trouble, we suggest copy
and pasting it into your web
browser.
In the IWW, we have a slogan:
‘Help the work along’. So, if you
don’t see your school on this map,
remember to help the work along
by completing our survey.
Even if you are not based in
London, there are still ways to
help yourself and your fellow Some of the information
teachers. During our meeting provided for a London
Source: Google Maps back in May, we discussed a list of English school
6 August 2024