Latest news with #AssociationofSecondaryTeachersofIreland
Irish Times
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Will there be a teacher's strike in the autumn?
Pat Leahy and Jack Horgan-Jones join Hugh Linehan to look back on the week in politics: Pope Francis passed away on Easter Monday at the age of 88. Thoughts now turn to the election of his successor and whether they will be viewed to be as tolerant and progressive as the late pontiff. Minister for Education Helen McEntee has her work cut out for her to keep secondary school teachers onside with both the Teacher's Union of Ireland and the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland voting to ballot on industrial action if plans to reform the Leaving Certificate from this September are not paused. And the Government has told RTÉ that State funding of more than €60 million for its redundancy plan will hinge on the broadcaster hitting yearly targets as it reduces its headcount. Plus, the panel picks their favourite Irish Times pieces of the week: Bill Clinton on a polarized America 30 years on from the Oklahoma bombing , Ireland needs to tread carefully with the EU on tariffs, and have we reached an empathy crisis ?
Irish Examiner
23-04-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
ASTI conference: Teacher had to delay having children as illness due to pregnancy not covered
A Limerick teacher says she was forced to delay having children because of pregnancy-related sickness, which is not taken into account in the sick leave scheme. Speaking on a motion carried at the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) annual conference in Killarney, Julianne Butler said pregnancy-related sick leave 'should not be within the same category' as other sick leave. The teacher, aged in her 40s, said she suffers from hyperemesis gravidarum, a condition which causes some pregnant women to experience excessive nausea and vomiting. 'From my very first day of knowing that I am pregnant, I will start to vomit and it will stay with me for my whole pregnancy. So even when I'm 39 weeks, I am still vomiting. "That means that I could spend weeks on a bathroom floor. I could be in and out of the maternity being on a drip just to try and rehydrate myself, so it obviously makes work very difficult,' Ms Butler told the Irish Examiner. According to Ms Butler, this meant she had to 'delay' her family because she could not afford to go on extended sick leave. 'My children are 15, 12, and then I have a huge gap, and I have a six-year-old and a three-year-old. I couldn't have any more children between my second and third because I had accrued so much sick leave from my first two pregnancies,' she explained. She pointed out that sick leave is 'judged the same', whether you're male or female — not taking into account pregnancy-related sick leave. 'My argument is that a man will never accrue pregnancy-related sick leave. He'll never have appointments or he'll never have that situation. So for me, pregnancy-related sick leave should not be within the same category. It's totally unfair for them to be all lumped in. 'The Department of Education say that when you use up your sick paid days, you go on to half pay, and that was their attempt at gender equality. "Whereas if you were a man and you had accrued all that sick leave, you go on no pay. And that's how they deem it to be equal in that sense. Whereas in reality, they should never be put in the same bracket.' Four-year rolling sick leave As teachers have four-year rolling sick leave, Ms Butler said she could not consider having another baby until she 'wiped out all of that four years' during which she carried sick leave. In her late 30s, she had a miscarriage at 20 weeks, after which it took her another year to get pregnant. I had the stress of, 'Oh my God, I've already accrued 30 or 40 days because of the miscarriage that's already going to be held against me'. 'You are worried about your money, about paying your mortgage, you're worried about paying the bills, your food, shopping, and all the rest, whereas you should just be worrying about getting through the day.' During her fourth pregnancy, Ms Butler, who teaches English in Limerick Educate Together Secondary School, had to make arrangements with the cleaning staff — and asked for extra bin bags to be put outside her classroom. 'The ladies' toilets were too far away in my school, if I have to run out of class to vomit, I'm not asking somebody else to clean up after. But it was because I was forced into a situation where I couldn't take the time, I was running out of sick leave time." She said throughout her pregnancy, her school was highly supportive. 'My principal and the support that I got within my school was amazing.' Ms Burke's plea was part of a motion in which the ATSI sought to negotiate with the Department of Education with the aim of amending the sick leave schemes.
Irish Times
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
Teachers' Union of Ireland to ballot on industrial action if Leaving Cert reform not paused
Delegates at the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) conference in Wexford have followed their Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) colleagues and voted to ballot on industrial action in the event of ongoing talks on Leaving Certificate reform failing to result in anticipated changes being paused. A motion on the issue, debated on Wednesday as the Minister for Education Helen McEntee arrived to address the delegates, was overwhelmingly passed after the conference heard the changes would affect standards and equality. A new round of talks aimed at resolving the dispute over the proposed reform started two weeks ago and is expected to conclude next month. The intention now is for a vote on industrial action, up to and including strike action, to go ahead if those talks fail. 'The facts are clear,' said TUI vice-president Anthony Quinn, who teaches in Co Monaghan, when proposing the motion on industrial action, 'these reforms are being rushed through without adequate preparation time. The resources required have not been secured, the professional concerns of teachers have been consistently overlooked'. READ MORE As the debate was in progress, Ms McEntee said the Government was providing additional funding to address concerns in relation to facilities such as labs and would also provide more training to teachers themselves. 'There's been a lot done to date, money invested in our science labs and a huge amount of teacher training has already happened. But I am engaging with them now to see what more I can do to support them. We all know these changes are being brought in for the benefit of young people.' Responding, the union's president, David Waters, insisted the level of consultation to date had fallen 'well short of what is required', the current talks had so far yielded 'very little' and teachers will press ahead with strike action if the concerns of their unions are not taken on-board. He said substantially more resources would be needed for implementation, along with flexibility to the approach taken in relation to different subjects, and the anonymity of the Leaving Cert process was 'a red line' for the union. His repeated references to the potential for strike action were well received by the conference. In her address the Minster acknowledged AI is a concern in the context of any move away from exam-based assessment but insisted she would work 'hand in hand' with teachers to ensure the process is a success. Referencing the increasingly widespread use of AI by students, Mr Waters described recent guidance that its use should be permitted as long as it was acknowledged as 'staggeringly naive', suggesting that the system will inevitably be abused.
Irish Independent
23-04-2025
- Health
- Irish Independent
Alarm over 64pc surge in teachers on sick leave as a result of assaults in schools
The stark revelation came as Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) members overwhelmingly voted to conduct a detailed national survey to clarify the full extent of physical aggression in Irish schools - and the need for enhanced sick/assault leave, financial support programmes and counselling for teachers and special needs assistants impacted. ASTI general secretary Kieran Christie warned that it was no longer acceptable for a teacher to have to display actual bruises to qualify for assault leave. Teachers also called for a relaxing of the requirement to describe physical aggression as assault - with many teachers reluctant to describe incidents where youngsters unintentionally cause physical harm as 'assaults.' ASTI members also backed a review of sick leave arrangements as one teacher, Julianne Butler of Limerick North ASTI, revealed she had to deliberately delay her family and time her pregnancies because of a medical condition and the limitations of her allowable sick leave. Ms Butler suffered from hyperemesis gravidarum which causes acute nausea. Sick leave entitlements are calculated on a rolling four year basis. Despite having a serious pregnancy-related illness, she faced being put on half-pay. Under the ordinary illness entitlement, a teacher is allowed 183 days of paid sick leave in a four year period including both full and half pay. Other teachers highlighted how verbal assaults can cause severe trauma. Geraldine O'Brien of Clare ASTI revealed one young female educator suffered a breakdown following a verbal assault and being required to engage with a parent by her principal. ADVERTISEMENT She warned what the young woman suffered was "horrendous" and left her inconsolable. "She suffered a physical and mental breakdown as a result of this situation. One year later, she is somewhat recovered." The union warned that those who suffer psychological trauma in the workplace need to be supported in the same manner as those who endure physical assaults and aggression. One health and welfare study found that, over recent years, the number of teachers taking sick leave after physical assaults in Ireland had soared by 64pc. It found the number of teachers taking sick leave after physical assaults had soared from 260 to 404. The vast majority of incidents occurred in primary schools and involved 106 primary school teachers and 285 special needs assistants. Ray Nolan of ASTI Drogheda branch said the survey on the true extent of physical assaults in school settings should be a matter of utmost priority. He cited one person, Sophie Cole from Cork, who had to be hospitalised after a school assault. Sophie - from Carrigaline - had her arm slammed down onto a steel-reinforced cable in 2022 and suffered permanent nerve damage. She suffers from Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) which has been described as the world's most painful condition. Sophie now campaigns to raise awareness of teachers and special needs assistants who suffer assaults and physical aggression in the workplace. The Cork educator warned that children are not to blame - but rather the entire system. "I have taken a lot of kicks, headbutts and even been thrown across the room - but I always loved my job and loved helping the children," she said in a 2022 interview. Mr Nolan warned that such stories are "heart-breaking" with major concern over the lack of support provided for such teachers. The education sector now suffers from the second highest rate of workplace assaults and physical aggression in Ireland. "There has been a significant number of teachers and SNAs having to take leave after these assaults," he added. Natalie Doyle-Brady of Dublin ASTI said it was critical that preventative steps be taken to protect teachers from such acts of physical aggression. "There are not enough supports in place," she warned. Barry Hazel of ASTI Dublin queried whether any legal cases had been taken as a result of such incidents. "It is only when money comes into play that things change. Have there been cases against schools?" Mr Christie said the issue of workplace safety was of enormous importance to everyone involved in the education sector. "One issue that the ASTI has been active and vocal on for many years is the safety, health and welfare of teachers and wider school communities alike," he said. "Thankfully, while schools are generally great places to work, from time-to-time difficult situations can and do arise." "It is infrequent but unfortunately, on rare occasions, teachers get assaulted in their school. As I say, it is a very small number of instances and a sad fact of life." "The ASTI has been demanding that the Department of Education broaden the definition of assault in its circular letter for quite some time now." "It is no longer acceptable that assault is so narrowly defined that you nearly have to have to show the bruises to qualify for assault leave." "The concept of psychosocial injury hasn't yet arrived in the consciousness of the Department of Education. The psychological effects of an assault in the course of the teacher's duties and during approved school activities can be devastating. This must change."
Irish Independent
23-04-2025
- Science
- Irish Independent
Teachers alarmed by potential AI threat to new senior cycle as minister vows to press ahead
Warning of increased stress for students as 40pc of assessments made up of project work Artificial intelligence (AI) poses a direct threat to the standard of Irish second level education and may also heighten inequality if new senior cycle changes are rushed through. The warning came as Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland (ASTI) general secretary Kieran Christie said the union and its members were greatly concerned given the potentially enormous impact posed by the changes for the reputation of Irish education.
