About us in English

National Union of Teachers in Sweden (Lärarnas Riksförbund, LR), founded in 1884, now counts about 80 000 members and organizes teachers employed in pre-school, primary, secondary and adult education.

Lärarnas Riksförbund also organizes educational and vocational counsellors, trainee teachers and university students studying to become teachers. Membership dues are about 1 percent of the gross salary of each individual member.

Lärarnas Riksförbund is one of the largest member organizations of Saco (the Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations).

Salary negotiations

Salaries are regulated by collective bargaining with the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting). On the basis of a central agreement there is also collective bargaining on individual salaries in each local community.

Vision - this is Lärarnas Riksförbund 2012

1. We are an offensive, modern and persuasive union with our members´ conditions and interests in focus.

2. We stand for qualification, professionalism and pride in our profession.

3. With the power of the collective, our members get the strength to have a voice.

4. We are the given choice for teachers and educational and vocational counsellors with an academic degree — regardless of mandatorship.

Consultations

Lärarnas Riksförbund is officially consulted in many matters concerning educational policy and school organization and is frequently asked to make official comments on government reports and bills.

Quality, qualifications and competence

Lärarnas Riksförbund takes an active part in creating a body of public opinion concerning educational policy and school development by influence in mass media and by formal and informal contacts with politicians and other influential actors. Lärarnas Riksförbund always aims at being in the front line concerning reforms and new ideas in the educational sector.

Lärarnas Riksförbund is working to raise the status of the teachers. The teachers must have more influence concerning their own working situation and concerning school development.

Lärarnas Riksförbund is working to influence the government to introduce a formal authorization for qualified teachers. An independent council, where the teachers´ organisations are represented, should grant this authorization for qualified teachers, with an exam and at least one year of school practice.

International relations

Lärarnas Riksförbund is a member of the Education International (EI) and its European section (EI-E).

Since 1995 Lärarnas Riksförbund is also a member of the European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE).

On the regional level Lärarnas Riksförbund is co-operating with other teachers´ organisations through the Nordic Teachers´ Council (NLS).

Lärarnas Riksförbund also takes active part in the Baltic Conference of Teachers´ Unions. In the last years Lärarnas Riksförbund has held seminars in Estonia and Latvia together with EEPU and LIZDA respectively.

The structure of the Union

The supreme decision making body of the union is the Congress, which meets every fourth year. The board of the union and the chairman direct the daily work. The board has a secretariat of about 65 people at its disposal. Lärarnas Riksförbund has an organization on school-, community- and regional levels all over Sweden.

Publications

Lärarnas Riksförbund publishes a members´ journal, “Skolvärlden", with 10 issues a year, Skolvärlden has a website www.skolvarlden.se with daily news.

The union also publishes many booklets and pamphlets on different issues, and also arranges many seminars and conferences on central and regional level.