Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

There is a limit of five days; after that there must be a reapplication process.

I was happy to make this amendment. It was central to the allaying of concerns expressed by unions and other representatives. One must remember, however, that this is mainly a problem in primary schools and it is principals in those primary schools, who are union members, who until now have been making the decisions about hiring people.

I understand from reports within the Department that there is a reduction in the salary scale for retired teachers coming back to teach on a temporary basis. They do not come back at the same grade at which they retired, they come back at the starting grade so the financial incentive has been reduced.

See this speech in context