Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 293: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if his attention has been drawn to the fact that adult literacy tutors receive no sick pay, holiday pay, pension scheme or increments in respect of experience or extra qualifications; and his plans to introduce a scheme that would recognise that it is an integral part of the qualifications framework here and that tutors should be afforded equivalent terms and conditions from vocational educational committees as apply to other tutors on the FETAC ladder. [28117/08]

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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The Adult Literacy services are funded by my Department through annual grants to the Vocational Education Committees (VECs), which deliver the services locally. VECs employ Adult Literacy tutors on a full-time and part-time basis and it is the VECs which are responsible for their terms and conditions.

The annual grant provided by my Department to VECs may be used to cover the cost of tutor training. Adult Literacy tutors undergo in-service training before they start work as paid tutors or volunteers. Staff development programmes are provided on a modular in-service basis for tutors and literacy organisers in co-operation with National Adult Literacy Association (NALA) and Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT). The programmes lead to national certification at degree, diploma and certificate level by HETAC. My Department provides an annual grant to WIT to provide these courses.

Tutors provide tuition in groups and on a one-to-one basis, normally for two hours per week. Volunteer tutors normally provide tuition on a one-to-one basis. Under the Intensive Tuition in Adult Basic Education (ITABE) programme, introduced in 2006, up to six hours of tuition per week may be provided.

In 2007, there were 44 paid full-time adult literacy tutors, 1,448 paid part-time tutors and 3,600 volunteer tutors working within the VEC sector. In 2006, the corresponding figures were 43 paid full-time adult literacy tutors, 1,381 part-time tutors and 3,622 volunteer tutors.