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A teachers union must vote members on industrial action on “key issues” surrounding the coronavirus situation in schools.
The Irish Secondary Teachers Association (ASTI) met today and decided to take a vote just weeks after schools reopened during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Central Executive Committee meeting heard that members have “serious concerns about the health and safety of school communities.”
Issues raised include:
- Physical distancing in schools
- PPE supply
- Defining close contacts
- Full tests and test response times
- Provisions for high-risk teachers
- IT resources for students and teachers to facilitate remote teaching / learning
“The fact that high-risk teachers have been asked to work in crowded classrooms is unacceptable to us as a union,” ASTI President Ann Piggott said today.
“The safety of students and their teachers must be the priority.”
Piggott said teachers report new work practices are being implemented without consulting with school staff.
He added: “It is unthinkable that at a time when teachers have shown great commitment to their students and to maintaining education, schools would introduce job changes that would have an additional negative impact on teachers’ working lives.
“This smells of crisis opportunism and cannot go unanswered.”
The ASTI vote will also cover the difficulties faced by returning teachers who are forced to work on precarious contracts and those who suffer unequal salaries.
Sinn Fein Education spokesperson Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire said: “The issues that ASTI has raised are issues that can and should be solved. Sinn Féin identified the need to apply effective social distancing and protect high-risk school personnel. as key priorities in a document we presented to the Department of Education two weeks ago called ‘Keeping Schools Open’.
“We proposed an audit of school buildings to identify the schools that are under the most pressure to achieve social distancing, and we proposed a fund for schools to build, purchase modular units, or rent space to reduce the student-teacher ratio. The fact is, reopening schools safely has been a challenge because we have an education system that is overcrowded, underfunded, and understaffed.
We have also raised the issue of high-risk personnel. It is inconceivable that teachers who are at high risk or who have high risk family members at home would be forced to work in an environment where they do not feel safe. There are solutions to be found.
“We also agree that the pay gap between teachers is unacceptable and unsustainable.
“These issues have been on the agenda for weeks. It is unacceptable that the Department of Education has allowed things to get to this point, as ASTI now sees no alternative but to vote its members for industrial action.
“I absolutely believe that a strike can be avoided, but the government must now take action. They must urgently engage with ASTI and other school staff unions (INTO, TUI and Fórsa) to address the issues that have been raised.”
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