TUI CONFERENCE:TEACHERS' UNION of Ireland (TUI) general secretary Peter MacMenamin yesterday accused the Government of standing by in "the full knowledge" that certain schools are cherry-picking their students to the exclusion of those with educational disadvantage.
In a hard-hitting inaugural address to the TUI annual congress in White's Hotel, Wexford, Mr MacMenamin criticised the lack of investment in education, the failure to provide resources for students who learn English as a second language, and the increasing divisions and inequalities in society.
Delegates applauded as Mr MacMenamin called for special needs resources to be available to all second-level schools. This, he said, would immediately remove one of the excuses offered to parents by some schools that claim not to have resources to cater for a student with special needs.
"To translate," Mr MacMenamin said. "We in this private secondary school don't want the trouble of dealing with your difficulties . . . we only want the privileged so we can perpetuate this privilege."
TUI president Tim O'Meara accused the Minister, in his address, of closing her eyes and wishing the problem away, saying schools that showed "contempt for public policy are allowed to soak up public funds unchecked".
Most teachers did not benefit from the recent benchmarking report, it was claimed. "It was bad news for people whose job had changed out of all proportion and whose level of responsibility had increased beyond all recognition," said Mr MacMenamin.
Mr O'Meara added: "Benchmarking is a failed process. It suits employers because the pay of all public sector workers is compared with the worst employers in the private sector."
In April the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) will meet to decide whether to enter new pay talks. On matters of pay, the four teaching unions have reached an agreed position for the first time. According to Mr O'Meara, the TUI has advised Ictu, however, that it will not participate in negotiations on changes to working conditions unless the outcome of such negotiations is decided by its members only. "This agreed position is that there be no further demands on the conditions of service of teachers. We have given enough," Mr MacMenamin said.
The TUI's acceptance of Towards 2016 was, Mr O'Meara said, "reluctant and conditional". If there is to be a new pay agreement, "and that is a big if", Mr O'Meara said, "then it must be an agreement that concentrates on pay".
Investment in education must not be affected by the economic downturn, Mr O'Meara warned.