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Irish Examiner
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Union ballots school secretaries on strike action over exclusion from pension scheme
More than 2,300 secretaries in Irish primary and secondary schools may go on indefinite strike over a pensions' dispute, a trade union has warned. Fórsa said a ballot of its members is now under way as part of an ongoing campaign to secure access to the Single Public Service Pension Scheme for school secretaries across the country. While the union was successful following a long-running dispute with the Department of Education in bringing an end to a two-tier pay system for school secretaries, this agreement did not include access to the public service pension scheme. The ballot for indefinite strike action was said to reflect the level of frustration members feel about being excluded from the pension scheme, despite the regularisation of other arrangements two years ago. Andy Pike, Fórsa's head of education, said the 2023 agreement successfully standardised pay and conditions to end years of disparity in pay, contracts and job security but left a 'significant gap in the effort to achieve full equality'. 'Fórsa has consistently argued that pension justice is an essential and inseparable part of the process of regularising school secretaries into Department of Education employment. Like every other grade overseen by the department, they must now be afforded the same pension entitlements as other public service workers.' Mr Pike said that school secretaries are highly skilled, dedicated workers who play a central role in the daily operations of schools right around the country. He said to exclude them from key pension entitlements available to others 'undermines the progress already made'. He urged the departments of education and public expenditure to re-engage with the union meaningfully on the matter. 'A fair and equitable resolution must be reached. School secretaries deserve to be treated in the same way as other public service workers under the department's remit,' Mr Pike added. The ballot is set to conclude on June 11 after which indefinite strike action may follow. Speaking earlier this month, education minister Helen McEntee indicated that discussions were ongoing regarding this pension ask from unions. 'That is engagement that will have to happen as part of an overall engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform,' she said. 'They are an integral part of our schools and it is really important that we support them in every way we can.' The Department of Education was contacted for comment. Read More Kevin Callinan: Working from home is a real political issue
Irish Independent
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
More than 2,300 school secretaries begin ballot on strike action
A spokesperson at Fórsa, which represents school secretaries in primary and secondary schools, said the ballot began today. It is part of a campaign to enable school secretaries to become member of a public service pension scheme. Union officials said they are excluded from the pension scheme despite joining the Department of Education's centralised payroll in 2023. Andy Pike, Fórsa's head of education, said a union agreement with the department in 2023 successfully standardised pay and conditions for school secretaries, ending years of disparity in pay, contracts, and job security. 'It was a landmark agreement, marking a major step forward in recognising the critical role of school secretaries in our education system,' he said. 'However, the agreement did not include pension provision under the Single Public Service Pension Scheme, and this has left a significant gap in the effort to achieve full equality.' He said pension justice is an inseparable part of the process of regularising school secretaries into Department of Education employment. Mr Pike said they must be afforded the same pension entitlements as other public service workers. 'School secretaries are highly skilled and dedicated professionals,' he said. He said they play a central role in the daily operations of every school and provide crucial leadership in every school community. ADVERTISEMENT 'That school secretaries remain excluded from the public service pension scheme undermines the progress already made,' he said. He said the ballot reflects members' determination to see the process through to its conclusion. Mr Pike said Fórsa is urging the Department of Education and the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform to re-engage meaningfully on the matter. 'A fair and equitable resolution must be reached,' he said. 'School secretaries deserve to be treated in the same way as other public service workers under the department's remit.' The ballot will end on Tuesday, June 11.
RTÉ News
20-05-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
School secretaries balloted for strike action in pensions row
The Fórsa trade union has commenced a ballot of school secretaries for indefinite strike action in a dispute over pensions. The union represents more than 2,300 school secretaries in primary and secondary schools. Fórsa said the move to ballot for indefinite strike action reflects the level of frustration with the continued exclusion of school secretaries from the public service pension scheme. Fórsa's Head of Education Andy Pike said a 2023 agreement with the Department of Education successfully standardised pay and conditions for school secretaries, ending years of disparity in pay, contracts, and job security. "However, the agreement did not include pension provision under the Single Public Service Pension scheme, and this has left a significant gap in the effort to achieve full equality," Mr Pike said. "Fórsa has consistently argued that pension justice is an essential and inseparable part of the process of regularising school secretaries into Department of Education employment," he added. Fórsa said it is continuing to urge the Department of Education and the Department of Public Expenditure to re-engage meaningfully on the matter. The ballot will conclude on Tuesday 11 June.
Irish Times
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
School secretaries to strike in September unless pensions issue resolved, union warns
School secretaries and caretakers will 'not be back in school in September' unless they are promised access to public service pensions, the country's largest public service union has warned. Fórsa , which represents about 18,000 school secretaries, caretakers and specials needs assistants (SNAs), held its annual education conference in Galway on Thursday. The union's head of education, Andy Pike, said that while school secretaries fought and won the right to be included on the Department of Education payroll , they continue to be denied access to the public service pension scheme. 'The simple message to schools and the Department of Education is that secretaries and caretakers will not be back to school in September if pensions are not dealt with over the summer,' Mr Pike said. READ MORE Delegates at the conference passed a motion proposed by the union's school secretaries branch to ballot members for an 'all-out indefinite strike', commencing at the end of August, unless there is progress regarding pensions access. Meanwhile, the union welcomed the Government's announcement of a redeployment scheme for SNAs , enabling them to move to a different school rather than having to take redundancy if the number of SNA posts in their school is reduced. Responding to the announcement, Noreen O'Mahony, chair of Fórsa's education division, said the new scheme is long overdue and brings SNAs a step closer to the full professionalisation of their role. 'We've been able to develop the SNA role through a series of negotiations over the last 20 years, which has established the SNA role as an integral feature of the school environment,' she said. 'That is significant, because it has changed the way we educate and socialise young people with additional education needs. However, the challenge remains to ensure that supported school places are available to everyone [who] needs them.' Mr Pike added that redeployment has been one of the issues under discussion as part of the SNA workforce development plan and is linked to the ongoing review and discussions on a new SNA national contract. He said a ballot of the union's SNA members would take place on the outcome of those discussions, which will cover the new national contract, a new minimum qualification, career progression opportunities and training opportunities. The process is due to be completed by September. The union also released details of a survey of its education members. It revealed high numbers – mostly SNAs – have been assaulted while in school. Nearly half of those said they had no support with medical expenses, while nearly half also said their employer was not supportive. Most did not receive counselling.
