Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 5 December 2017

Select Committee on Education and Skills

Estimates for Public Services 2017
Vote 26 - Education and Skills (Supplementary)

4:00 pm

Photo of Catherine MartinCatherine Martin (Dublin Rathdown, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Apologies, I should have come in on subhead A03. In general, I cannot let the opportunity go without raising the issue, as the Chair has referenced, of equal pay for equal work. Our young teachers play a vital role. They are highly skilled, specialised classroom practitioners with significant far-reaching responsibilities for our children on a daily basis. They are being devalued. The Minister spoke earlier about the recruitment in certain subjects. We will continue to shed teachers from urban areas due to extraordinary high rents. Their jobs simply are not allowing them continue teaching in the schools of their choice where they have permanent jobs. They are leaving, which is not good for the students. I would ask the Minister, not for the first time, to commit to the principle of equal pay for equal work and set out a timeframe. I ask him to make that commitment and set out a timeframe. It cannot be done overnight but to give respect to these young teachers, I ask him to set out a timeframe for implementation.

On the superannuation, the underestimation of those seeking to retire is worrying. On a breakdown, does the Minister know if teachers retiring early? As a former teacher, I looked to the more senior members of staff. They play an extraordinarily important role in guiding a young teacher when he or she joins a staff. Are they retiring before their time? If so, has the Minister any idea why they are doing so? Is it a reflection of stress in the workplace? If that is the case, has any research being done on it? Does the Minister know whether any data has been gathered on that?

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