ETEA President Stu Malinowski and 15 other FPSE presidents embarked on a lobby mission to Victoria on November 19-20, 2025. The theme was “Mobilization for Education” and the ETEA specific message was simple: when it comes to private international education, choose Union.

The lobby meetings were quite intense since they met with 8 separate MLAs in person and one government Deputy Minister on Zoom. Three meetings of particular note were with BC Premier David Eby, Minister of Post-secondary and Future Skills Jessie Sunner, and Minister of Jobs and Economic Growth Ravi Kahlon. 

Overall, the ETEA/FPSE lobby was a big success. It was an incredible learning experience. Moreover, each meeting with senior officials lasted 30 minutes, so it allowed for substantive discussion and not just lip service. ETEA forcefully delivered our message and it was well received.   Stu also networked and promoted ETEA brand awareness.

The lobby effort has not stopped with this junket. FPSE is already planning a second Victoria visit in late winter, 2026. To be sure, the ETEA will be there building on the foundation we have already set. 

The following letter was sent to Languages Canada:

Dear ICEF Monitor, 

My name is Stuart Malinowski. I am President of the Education and Training Employees’ Association, which has been proudly representing the interests of private sector international education instructors since 1995. The ETEA is also a proud member of the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators, serving 18 public and private postsecondary institutions in BC.

I am writing in response to an article posted on your website on July 29, 2025 titled:  

“Nearly 30 Canadian language programmes closed, marking the “sharpest decline in the sector’s history”. This article was a follow up to a related ICEF article published on July 23, 2025 titled: “Measuring the impacts of the first full year of Canada’s foreign student enrolment cap”.

The ETEA and FPSE share Languages Canada’s deep concern over the dramatic decline in student enrolment and concomitant school closures and job losses happening across Canada. The numbers are truly “alarming”. Moreover, both the ETEA and FPSE want to work with organizations such as ICEF, Languages Canada and government bodies such as PTIRU to help address this crisis. 

Promoting, establishing and collaborating with a professional union such as the ETEA can be an important step towards improving the image and performance of any private ESL institution or the sector as a whole. In a unionized environment, accountability, transparency and mutual responsibility and interest prevail. Principles and standards matter. So do values such as fairness, mutual respect and collaboration. In a unionized environment, the bar is set higher for teachers be it in wages, and security, conduct. In a word, professionalism.

We have been working hard to lobby for our industry and undo the catastrophic changes that the Canadian government has made to our industry. Many of us have spent our entire careers teaching ESL and providing rewarding experiences for students. We continue to lobby for a more common sense approach to immigration reform.

I look forward to collaborating with ICEF and Languages Canada in an effort to stop the steep decline in student visas. Our industry deserves better than this.

Stuart Malinowski

ETEA President and Organizer

ETEA is proud to announce the second in our series of semi-montly socials! Locals 2 and 6 invite you to the Butcher and Bullock pub (911 West Pender Street) on Tuesday, December 5th, from 6:30-10:00pm, for an evening of trivia and beer. Get out of the rain, bring a co-worker, and have a couple of pints! Hope to see you there!