Minister vows to address working conditions for special needs assistants

Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan has promised to tackle working conditions for special needs assistants (SNAs) in schools.

She also said the Government was prepared to act if a study on contracts of zero and less than eight hours a week finds that these arrangements had a “serious and detrimental impact on citizens”.

"Whether people are working in schools, or in supermarkets, low-paid workers should at least be entitled to decent and fair treatment," Ms O'Sullivan told delegates at the Impact education division conference in Galway on Thursday.

Ms O’Sullivan, who received several standing ovations, said she had initiated negotiations to find a solution to the increasing fragmentation of SNA posts.

Such fragmentation,where SNAs were finding it harder to secure decent working hours each week, was “unacceptable”, she said.

Ms O’Sullivan said she could not issue a direction to schools but could initiate negotiations on the matter.

She said the Department of Education had written to management bodies, unions and the National Council for Special Education in the last few days asking all parties to come together over the next couple of weeks.

The aim was to “start putting in place a solution to address your union’s concerns - concerns which I share - about the hours worked by SNAs and the wages that they earn,” Ms O’Sullivan said.

On low pay, Ms O'Sullivan said that the stance taken by Dunnes Stores workers in holding a one day strike was "perfectly reasonable".

“The bottom line is that work should always pay,”she said, adding that those in work “should have dignity in their lives, and an ability to support their families”.

The Low Pay Commission was an "important Government commitment", and a study on zero hours contracts and contracts of less than eight hours a week should be completed by the end of the summer.

“If this study finds such work contracts have a serious and detrimental impact on our citizens, then the Government will act,”she said.

Ms O’Sullivan also referred to union concerns about the future of the school completion programme to address early school leaving.

She said she was in regular contact with Minister for Children Dr James Reilly about the need to invest in "these essential programmes", and a review of the programme was being undertaken by the Economic and Social Research Institute.

"We have a higher rate of school completion than any other country in Europe, " said Ms O'Sullivan, adding that "this is something to be proud of, but it is not enough".

“We cannot rest until all young people stay in school.”

The Government’s education budget had increased, but Ms O’Sullivan said she knew it was not enough, and she would “never stop advocating for further investment in education”.

She singled out better pay for staff, improved pupil-teacher ratios, investment in book rental schemes, school meals and technology, and emphasised that the early years sector needed a “significant step-change in investment”.

Responding to the Minister, Impact deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan said that the "quality of jobs" was the issue at the moment, and the union saluted the Dunnes Stores workers who, he said, "are uniting the trade union movement in a way not seen for years".

Referring to the school completion programme, he said that it had “faced cut after cut in recent years” and its “very viability is even in doubt”. He called on Ms O’Sullivan to increase her department’s effort to secure this and other critical projects.