Minister accuses trade unions of being 'unwilling' to negotiate as teachers prepare for 'all-out strike'

LAST UPDATE | 1 hr ago

THE PUBLIC EXPENDITURE Minister has lashed out at trade unions over the commencement of industrial action.

Jack Chambers’s comments come as more than 100,000 public sector workers have begun work to rule amid the dispute over pay and the cost of living.

In a strongly-worded statement issued by his department, the minister said the unions and representative associations have decided to move to industrial action “rather than engaging in substantive talks”.

His department said: “It is deeply unfair on the general public for there to be significant disruption to their daily lives because unions are unwilling to sit down and negotiate a new agreement.”

Chambers said he has “repeatedly indicated” the government’s desire to reach a new agreement and provision is being made in the budget for a new pay agreement for public sector workers.

He said he is “disappointed” by the assertion from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions that there is “no basis” for engagement.

“A mutually acceptable agreement could be reached quickly and efficiently if there is a willingness on both sides to do so,” he concluded.

Unions representing public sector workers have repeatedly voted to begin industrial action after a ballot of its members.

The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) also announced this evening that its members had voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action, including strike action.

Some 98.4% of members who voted backed the action, with 1.6% voting against.

The union, which represents more than 23,000 workers across post-primary, further and higher education, said it will serve notice on employers and begin industrial action from Monday, 12 October.

Members will stop engaging with emails and calls outside working hours, while those in second-level schools will withdraw from activities including Croke Park hours.

TUI members will also take part in the public-service-wide strike planned for Wednesday, 14 October, as well as a second strike day on Wednesday, 21 October if required.

TUI president Anthony Quinn said the vote showed members’ anger at what he described as the government’s failure to engage properly with unions on a new pay deal.

“In this context, the failure of Government to engage properly with unions around a new pay agreement is utterly unacceptable, and the mandate returned by our members makes this abundantly clear,” Quinn said.

General secretary Michael Gillespie said public service unions were “absolutely united” and urged the government to “engage meaningfully” on a new agreement. 

Meanwhile, the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) said teachers will not supervise children before or after the official school day due to an ongoing public sector pay dispute with the government.

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Máirín Ní Chéileachair, assistant general secretary of INTO, earlier said that unless Chambers “engages with public service unions in good faith” work-to-rule will continue and a 24-hour strike will be held on 14 October.

INTO is the largest teachers’ trade union in Ireland, representing about 50,000 teachers at primary level and another 7,000 at primary and post-primary level in Northern Ireland. 

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Ní Chéileachair said that from Monday, teachers in schools which use the Croke Park hours to provide extra supervision before and after school will no longer supervise students outside of official school hours. 

Croke Park hours are additional working hours that were brought in by the Croke Park and subsequent Haddington Road agreements.

Ní Chéileachair said that the responsibility for the safety of children on the school grounds is that of the school’s board of management.

She said the boards using Croke Park hours have been told to carry out a safety assessment and inform parents that the school cannot be opened until school officially starts if it is not safe for children to be dropped off without supervision. 

Ní Chéileachair said that extracurriculars involving teaching within official school hours will not be impacted, nor will activities teachers voluntarily take part in outside of school hours.

“All the public service unions have balloted their members, and they want the government to enter into talks in good faith with the public service unions to negotiate a new pay agreement,” she said.

She said 60% of INTO members turned up in person to polling stations, and 99.5% said that they were willing to engage in industrial action, up to and including strikes.

An INTO spokesperson told The Journal that teachers will also refrain from attending staff meetings and formal parent/teacher meetings outside of school hours.

Ireland’s main second-level teachers union, the Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland (ASTI), has said that up to 20,000 second-level teachers will also begin industrial action involving withdrawal from selected activities such as the Croke Park hours from Monday.

“In addition, ASTI members will participate in a public-service-wide day of strike action on Wednesday, 14 October, with pickets placed on all second-level schools where ASTI members teach,” it said.

The previous public sector pay deal expired at the end of June. It provided for general pay increases of 9.25% for public sector workers, along with a 1% local bargaining fund.

However, talks have yet to begin on a new agreement.

Public Service Union Fórsa, which represents workers across health, education and the civil service, has said members will work strictly to contract and refuse to undertake additional duties.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has said that workers would only provide duties necessary for “safe patient care” during rostered hours. 

INMO members will not work any additional unpaid hours or attend non-clinical meetings. 

Trade union Siptu members in health and local authorities are also engaging in work-to-rule.

Additional reporting by Emma Hickey