SADTU and the Struggle for Professional Unionism

This book traces the emergence and development of SADTU's professional unionism and explores its implications for teachers and the delivery of quality education in the context of SADTU's relationship with the state and the governing party, specifically the union's location within the ANC-led Tripartite Alliance.It highlights SADTU's role in the struggle for democracy, including its crusade for recognition as a non-racial union and its involvement in the development of post-apartheid education policy. However, despite its centrality in the education struggles of the past, SADTU's continued role and relevance in the development of the education system have become the subject of intense debate in the public domain, as it is seen as more focused on unionism and the political battles in the Alliance than on furthering teacher professionalism. This volume explores how and why this has come about, and offers insights that would enable SADTU to reclaim its role and relevance in reimagining the future of education in South Africa in response to the socio-economic development challenges that confront the country in the twenty-first century.