School Secretaries Deserve Fair Pay – Tóibín
Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín TD has expressed his support for school secretaries engaged in work-to-rule protests against the Department of Education. The majority of Irish school secretaries are not employees of the Department, meaning that they are not on a public service pay scales and can earn as little as €12,500 annually. Instead, most secretaries are employed directly by school boards of management and during the summer time have no choice but to avail of social welfare payments.
An Teachta Tóibín stated:
“The continued unfair treatment of Irish school secretaries has to stop. Secretaries and their union, Fórsa, are right to take a stand against unfair and crippling levels of pay.
“In schools across the state, secretaries do instrumental work in ensuring that the education system functions. Much of the heavy lifting in the education system at ground level is done by school secretaries.
“It is long overdue that the Department acknowledge the central role that secretaries play in the upkeep of the Irish education system. Minister for Education Joe McHugh should no longer be allowed to bury his head in the sand when it comes to school secretaries. It is time to put school secretaries on public service pay scales and allow them to live and work with dignity.”