Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Officials in the Department of Education and Skills have engaged with Fórsa throughout this process and remain committed to the ongoing process taking place under the auspices of the Workplace Relations Commission. It is disappointing that in circumstances where talks are actually ongoing, the union has moved to industrial action, which will impact on the day-to-day operation of schools at this most critical time.

On the matter of the Labour Court referral raised at the recent Workplace Relations Commission meeting, I must point out in the interest of fairness that several technical issues exist in respect of such a referral, as neither the Department nor the management bodies are the employers of the staff in question.

I thank the Deputy for raising these points.

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