REACTION:A BAN on all school sports and other extracurricular activities is one of the options under consideration by teachers in response to the Budget pay cut.
The proposed ban could affect key school competitions in GAA, rugby and soccer. It could also have a huge impact on Transition Year programmes and on a range of musical and cultural activities.
At this stage, teacher unions say there is no question of any disruption to Leaving Cert oral exams scheduled for March. However, the unions may come under pressure from more militant members to disrupt the exams.
Union officials stress that “nothing has been ruled out’’ as the teaching unions work out a co-ordinated response to the pay cuts. The options include additional industrial action, a work to rule and/or non co-operation with various Department of Education programmes.
Up to 77 per cent of teachers supported the one-day strike action earlier this month. Teachers do not have to be balloted again on any work to rule or non co-operation. The three teacher unions – the INTO, the ASTI and the TUI – also have a mandate for two further days of industrial action. However, the Irish Federation of University Teachers must seek a mandate for any industrial action.
Pay for the average teacher will be cut by 6 per cent as a result of the Budget. This is on top of the 7 per cent cut in the pension levy earlier this year. The move has unleashed anger among the State’s 50,000 teachers.
Yesterday Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe said he hoped to make progress on education reform in fresh talks with the teacher unions in the new year.
During the aborted partnership talks last week, the teachers softened their position on key issues and offered one hour’s extra work per week. The Minister said he hoped to pursue these issues shortly but this drew an angry response from the unions.
Yesterday all four teaching unions categorically “rejected out of hand” any suggestion that talks on a transformation agenda could continue.
The unions said the Government had its chance to talk last week but spurned the opportunity.
The general secretaries and presidents of the four teacher unions met yesterday to consider the impact of the Budget and plan a response.
In a statement, they said: “The leadership of the unions is determined to reflect the anger of teachers at the Budget cuts to salaries and changes to pensions through a sustained campaign of opposition.
The four unions said the unilateral imposition of a pay cut in the Budget was completely incompatible with social partnership which is now over.
TUI general secretary Peter MacMenamin accused the Government of “declaring war on the public service by reneging on discussions to find a workable solution as an alternative to cuts”.
