Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I assure the Deputy that absolute priority has been given to this matter. As I outlined, the individual case for each of the secretaries is not just a matter of acknowledging that there are secretaries in each of the schools. It is also a matter of gathering the individual data for each of the secretaries in terms of his or her service. That is a body of work and we are giving absolute priority to it. The complex process has already begun. The resources that are required from my Department have been put in place. The new IT system that will be needed to manage the process is being put in place. I acknowledge the work schools will do before the end of September in calculating the initial assimilation rate of pay and the annual leave entitlement for secretaries. They will then offer it to secretaries and secretaries will respond. I do not, for one minute, underestimate the value or importance of this work. We will expedite it as much as we possibly can.

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