Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The reputation of the education system, both nationally and internationally, attests to the dedication, skill and competence of Irish teachers generally. It is recognised that while the majority of teachers fulfil their teaching function and professional duties adequately and well, there are, as in all professions, a small number of underperforming personnel in schools. As part of the modernisation agenda for teachers under the social partnership agreement Towards 2016, it was agreed to address the issue of difficulties in relation to teacher performance.

Teachers are employed by the board of management of each individual school or in the case of the vocational education sector by the individual vocational education committee. Section 24(3) of the Education Act 1998 provides that a board of management of a school may suspend or dismiss teachers in accordance with procedures agreed from time to time between the Minister, the patron of the school, recognised school management organisations and any recognised trade union representing teachers. In that context and as one element of addressing issues of underperformance, discussions under the auspices of the Teachers Conciliation Council have commenced to review and revise existing procedures for the suspension and dismissal of teachers.

The Teachers Conciliation Council is the recognised forum for dealing with matters relating to pay and conditions of service for teachers. The parties to the forum include representatives of the managerial authorities of schools, the teacher unions and the Departments of Education and Science and Finance. The forum is, therefore, representative of employers and employees, as is usual in industrial relations matters. The procedures, when agreed, will provide fair and effective mechanisms in respect of the small number of cases where serious underperformance arises.

The representative body for school principals on industrial relations matters is the Irish National Teachers Organisation, INTO. While it remains open to principals to make their views known to the INTO, the Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me, as Minister, to open up an alternative process of negotiation to that already agreed and in place under the Teachers Conciliation Council.

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