Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 1 October 2020
177. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Education the estimated full-year cost of bringing all currently employed school secretaries under the direct employment of her Department. [27812/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am keenly aware of vital role by school secretaries within school communities and I recognise the very important work done by these staff, and the other support staff in the running of our schools.
In recognition of this, I have put special arrangements in place for the coming school year whereby schools will be funded to employ a replacement secretary or caretaker in the event that staff who are at very high risk of contracting serious illness from COVID-19 cannot work from the school premises. Furthermore, as part of a range of measures to support schools for a full re-opening at the commencement of the 2020/21 school year, the Employment Assistance Scheme (EAS) has been extended to all school staff including secretaries. The EAS provides advice to employees on a range of issues including wellbeing, legal, financial, bereavement, conflict, and mediation. I have met with Fórsa, who represent many of the secretaries working in schools.
Schemes were initiated in 1978 and 1979 for the employment of clerical officers and caretakers in schools. The schemes were withdrawn completely in 2008. These schemes have been superseded by the capitation grant schemes. The current grant scheme was agreed in the context of the Programme for Economic and Social Progress, published in 1991.
The majority of primary and voluntary secondary schools now receive assistance to provide for secretarial, caretaking and cleaning services under these grant schemes. It is a matter for each individual school to decide how best to apply the grant funding to suit its particular needs. Where a school uses the grant funding for caretaking or secretarial purposes, any staff taken on to support those functions are employees of individual schools. Specific responsibility for terms of employment rests with the school.
On foot of a Chairman’s Note to the Lansdowne Road Agreement, my Department engaged with the Unions representing school secretaries and caretakers, including through an independent arbitration process in 2015. The Arbitrator recommended a cumulative pay increase of 10% between 2016 and 2019 for staff and that a minimum hourly pay rate of €13 be phased in over that period. This arbitration agreement covered the period up to 31 December 2019.
The arbitration agreement was designed to be of greatest benefit to lower-paid secretaries and caretakers. For example, a secretary or caretaker who was paid the then minimum wage of €8.65 per hour in 2015 prior to the arbitration has from 1 January 2019, been paid €13 per hour which is a 50% increase in that individual’s hourly pay.
In May last year Fórsa trade union tabled a follow-on claim from the 2015 pay agreement. Officials from my Department, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and School Management Bodies are in discussions with Fórsa under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission.
The matter is a complex one that raises significant policy, legal and Exchequer cost issues. The survey undertaken last year established that the ultimate full-year pay cost of all of the elements of Fórsa’s claim, that is to pay secretaries and caretakers on the maximum of the scale at full hours, is in the region of €50 million per annum, with a further substantial cost of approximately €36m for the provision of pension.
I must also remain cognisant that the implications arising from this claim impact across the wider education and public sector. In 2017 the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform carried out a detailed scoping exercise in relation to pension provision for staff in the Community and Voluntary Sector. The result illustrated that this matter presents very significant implications for the Exchequer.
The talks are set to resume in the WRC this Thursday 1st October. In these circumstances I regret Fórsa’s announcement on the 28th of September of an immediate survey of it its members on the resumption of the industrial action in which members were engaged in January this year.
The WRC is the most appropriate forum for these discussions to take place and I support the continued dialogue between all parties in an effort to reach a mutually acceptable solution.
