Professional Unity - The New Union - National Education Union (NEU)
Members of the NUT and ATL voted overwhelmingly in favour of the amalgamation of the two unions into a new union, which will be called the National Education Union (NEU). 97% of NUT members and 73% of ATL members supported the amalgamation. The NEU will come into existence on 1st September 2017 and, with over 450,000 members, will be the fourth largest trade union in Britain. It will represent the majority of teachers and education professionals and be the biggest education union in Europe. From the beginning of September, NUT and ATL will operate in parallel sections governed by their current democratic structures, under the umbrella of a Joint Executive Council, until full amalgamation in January 2019, with joint general secretaries until 2023.
It is a fantastic result for members of both unions and for education. For too long, education ministers have played divide and rule amongst teacher unions. The NUT and ATL both have proud histories but, speaking with one voice, we will be a stronger force standing up for education, teachers and other school staff and the children we teach.
Mary Bousted, General Secretary of the ATL, said: We will speak with a stronger voice on behalf of education professionals and the children, young people and adults they support. We will bring together everyone in their workplaces - teachers, lecturers, support staff, heads and managers - and empower them to improve their working lives.
Professional unity is a long-held aspiration of the NUT, and the NEU will be a game-changer in the education landscape of the future. Our General Secretary, Kevin Courtney, is delighted to be jointly leading it forward over the coming months and years. ATL and NUT continue as entirely separate and independent organisations until 1st September 2017. From that date until January 2019, ATL and NUT sections will operate separately within the new union, electing separate local officers according to their current sectional rules who will provide member support exactly as they do now.