TThe Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) is to meet the Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, and school managers this week.
They will attempt to end the stand-off about the new supervision/substitution scheme in schools. Mr Dempsey had given the ASTI until today to clarify its position. Failing that, he said, he would instruct his officials to make arrangements to continue contingency plans until Easter. Those plans involve non-teachers, who have been doing the work for some time, being brought in again.
The Minister's deadline looked certain to pass today without any resolution. The teachers' union said last night it was standing by its interpretation of the scheme, that teachers would be paid for being on call for supervision and substitution, whether their services were required or not.