Industrial action possible in education and social care

Ireland

The Fórsa public services trade union has rejected what it described as a ‘derisory’ offer from the Department of Education in a long-running dispute over the pay and conditions of school secretaries. The union has been campaigning for years to end the unequal treatment of school secretaries employed by the Department of Education and those employed by schools. The latter are on much lower pay rates and have inferior rights to sickness and annual leave. Fórsa has not ruled out the possibility of industrial action. Meanwhile, social care workers in intellectual disability services have voted for industrial action in a dispute over outsourcing. Their union, SIPTU, argues that the health executive has failed to comply with the national public sector collective agreement which requires consultation in advance of any plans to outsource services.

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