LIMERICK school secretaries and caretakers are prepared to strike “for as long as it takes” to secure equal treatment and pension inclusion.
That was the message coming from local members of the Fórsa trade union who gathered outside the constituency office of Fine Gael TD Kieran O’Donnell this Tuesday (September 2).
The trade union is carrying out a nationwide industrial action in a campaign to secure equal treatment and pension inclusion for over 2,600 school staff nationally.
Today marks the fourth day of strike action since last Thursday (August 28).
Catherine O’Neill has worked as a secretary at St Michael’s Infants School, Sexton Street, for 20 years, and told the Limerick Post that staff are fed up with “class distinction.”
“There’s other secretaries in schools working with the Education and Training Board (ETB) who have all of the conditions that we are looking for, and they are doing the same job as us, so how is that right?”
“We’re just looking for a bit of fairness, it’s not pie in the sky, all we want is for people to come and engage with us”, Catherine said.
Tim Clancy, who has worked as a part-time caretaker at Gaelscoil Sheoirse Clancy for 11 years, says he feels like “a second class-citizen” over what protesters deem a lack of pay parity.
“If we don’t stand tall on this for the next three or four weeks, we’ll end up with nothing”, Tim explained.
“We don’t get pay rises every year like everyone else.”
Caretakers and secretaries are also seeking occupational sick pay.
“It’s very hard to come into work every day and you know that if you get sick, you can’t take time off. I’d like to get a fair deal and maybe have three or four days off a year so you’re not panicking that you might be down a day’s wages,” Tim continued.
While Tim is approaching retirement in the next two years, he says getting out on the picket line isn’t just about better conditions for workers today, it’s also for those coming down the line.
“The secretaries and caretakers coming up behind us deserve to get a fair crack of the whip,” he said.
Exploratory talks took place last week (August 27) at the Workplace Relations Commission, but Fórsa said no proposals were brought forward for a negotiation to take place.
They also said they were disappointed by “a lack of engagement from the government” on the issue.
Catherine O’Neill also commented on a “radio silence” the union has been met with since going on indefinite strike action.
“It is crazy but we are going to stay out here for as long as it takes, and the government will just have to get that into their heads because we are not going to stop.”
A spokesperson from the Department of Education and Youth told the Limerick Post that they “recognise the vitally important role of secretaries and caretakers within school communities” and will “continue to actively engage with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Workplace Relations Commission and remains focused on finding a resolution to this dispute”.
The spokesperson said progress made in improving terms and conditions of school secretaries include linking their pay to any increases in pay under public sector agreements, improved annual leave entitlements and maternity provisions, and paid sick leave in excess of statutory requirements.
The Department spokesman added that terms of employment for sectaries lay with the school, and not the Department, as they are employees of the school and not public servants.