Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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140. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to issue a directive on implementing pay deductions for members of teachers' unions which rejected working additional hours under the Croke Park agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10681/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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ASTI's withdrawal from the Croke Park hours means that the union has repudiated the Lansdowne Road Agreement. The financial and other consequences for ASTI members of failure to co-operate with the terms of the agreement were formally notified to ASTI in June 2016.  It was indicated at that time that in the event of continuing failure to co-operate in the medium term, further additional measures may also ensue. 

A number of measures are being applied since July 2016 or will be applied to ASTI members in consequence:

- The pay increases for 2012 new entrant teachers that are effective from 1 January 2017 and 1 January 2018 do not apply;

- Increments are frozen until July 2018;

- Missing out on inclusion of the S&S allowance of €1,592 into the pay scale – the first moiety of this due on 1 September 2016 (€796) has not been paid;

- The alleviation of the FEMPI Act pay reductions for higher earners has been withdrawn, meaning a further pay reduction of up to €1,769 per teacher;

- Non-application of the €1,000 increase being paid to public servants on 1 April 2017, as brought forward from 1 September 2017 under the LRA;

- The Ward Report measures have been withdrawn and the revised sequence for filling posts is not being applied – both of these would enable fixed-term and part-time teachers to gain permanent, full-time jobs more easily and quickly than before;

- Promotion posts announced in Budget 2017 will not be available;

- The additional teacher allocation/ reduction in class contact time from September 2017 for teachers with Junior Cycle classes will not apply;

- No S&S opt-out option;

- No S&S opt-in option;

- Missing out on chance to influence use of Croke Park hours through a review;

- Potential for job losses through compulsory redundancy;

- Withdrawal of enhanced redundancy payment where a teacher is made redundant;

- Potential delay or loss of the pay increase of €1,000 due on 1 September 2017 and the reversal of the pay reductions for higher earners due on 1 April 2017.

Following discussions, the Teachers Conciliation Council published a set of proposals in November for consideration by ASTI members aimed at finding a resolution to their dispute. ASTI members have chosen to reject the proposals put forward aimed at resolving their dispute and in consequence, to reject the Lansdowne Road Agreement. It is regrettable that many ASTI members will now suffer permanent financial losses and loss of other benefits as a result of this choice. 

The proposals represented the final outcome of the process and there will be no further offer made to ASTI. The Government is committed to continuing to work with unions inside the agreement in progressing consideration of pay and conditions issues. The work of the Public Service Pay Commission is now underway in this regard.