A/HRC/44/39 public subsidies, collection of data, advertising directed at children and youth40 and longerterm developments in the way education systems are shaped once the crisis is over. 41 The risks associated with handing over data and control of education to a few companies based in a handful of countries cannot be underestimated. A range of alternatives to commercial solutions exist, including tools under creative commons licences and public online learning platforms, that should be explored and enhanced. D. Rights of teachers and other education workers 53. COVID-19-related decision-making on education must take into account the fact that learners are embedded in their communities. This entails recognizing the implications of different aspects of education decision-making for the rights of those who teach, care for and share with learners.42 54. The COVID-19 crisis has affected not only learners but also teachers. According to UNESCO, 63 million primary and secondary school teachers have been affected by the unprecedented disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.43 This is without counting education workers such as pre-primary teachers and tertiary level teachers, and all other staff working in educational institutions, such as casual or sessional teachers, persons providing additional support to learners with special education needs and disabilities, administrative staff, cleaners, security staff, cafeteria workers and bus drivers. 55. These workers too are rights holders. Whether they work in the public or the private sector, they should enjoy all the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, in particular the right to the enjoyment of just and favourable conditions of work, which includes fair remuneration, safe and healthy working conditions, equal opportunities for promotion, and rest, leisure and reasonable limitation of working hours; to social security, including social insurance; to form and join trade unions of their choice; and to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health (articles 7, 8, 9 and 12 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights). 56. The health crisis has shed light on the poor conditions in many schools throughout the world, where teachers and pupils find themselves in overcrowded classrooms, sometimes with no or poor access to water and sanitation. Many teachers and other education workers lack social protection and training. 1. Participation of teachers, teachers’ unions and associations in decision-making 57. The concrete implementation of the right to education for all largely relies on the commitment of a sufficient number of trained teachers who are able to take part in decisionmaking processes on how best to ensure that right. 58. The Special Rapporteur underscores that trade union rights and the right to participate in decision-making processes are not a luxury that may be exercised only in uneventful times. It is crucial also in times of crisis, for the sake of efficiency. Teachers know their students. They are often best placed to be innovative and creative in their local contexts, to contact families and communities to assess their difficulties and needs, and to tailor their actions to meet those needs. But to do that, they also need to be supported, trusted and listened to, and be used to developing and applying their creativity and critical thinking. The fact that teachers themselves have families and other commitments must be acknowledged when planning responses to future crises. 59. Periods of crisis tend to reinforce authoritarian and top-down attitudes, however, including in the field of education. While there have been examples of rather good 40 41 42 43 See, for example, Solidarité Laïque, “Beware: major risk of privatization of world education!”. See also A/69/286. See, for example, Ben Williamson, “New pandemic edtech power networks“ (1 April 2020). Aoife Nolan, “Should schools reopen? The human rights risk - an advisory note to Independent SAGE” (May 2020). See https://en.unesco.org/news/startling-digital-divides-distance-learning-emerge. 13