Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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82. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills further to Parliamentary Questions No. 154 and 167 of 3 October 2017, the number of legacy issues involved; the way in which different leave entitlements came about; the person responsible for this; and when it will be corrected. [44338/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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In the past, public service employers had adopted varying practices in regard to leave entitlements which involved atypical and local arrangements which varied from sector to sector and from employer to employer. Such legacy issues in regard to leave entitlements arose because of the wide variety and the number of employers involved across the public service. With a view to correcting these issues and with a view to introducing harmonised leave arrangements, initiatives were put in place in various sectors under the overall guidance of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. In this context my Department, in consultation with the Management Body, Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI) and the relevant trade unions representing staff interests in the ETB Sector reached an agreement to harmonise leave allowances for staff. The agreement reached between the parties found expression in Circular letter 0008/2014 - “Revised Annual Leave Arrangements for Staff employed by Education and Training Boards, other than Teachers, Tutors, Special Needs Assistants and Youthreach Resource Persons” (link to Circular 0008/2014 -

Subsequently, my Department, in consultation with the Management Body and the relevant Trade Unions representing staff concerned, namely SIPTU and IMPACT, reached an agreement in December 2016 regarding particular anomalies raised by those unions which had a negative impact on certain staff comprehended by Department Circular 0008/2014. Under the December 2016 agreement there are three types of leave allocations for staff comprehended by this agreement, these are:

- Existing staff (i.e., those staff in employment in an ETB, or who were in the process of being transferred from SOLAS to an ETB on 6 January 2014) who have had their leave entitlements set in accordance with Circular 0008/2014, within a range of 22 to 32 days.

- Newly recruited staff (i.e. staff appointed on or after the 7 January 2014) who will have an annual leave entitlement as set for the grade to which they are recruited.

- Newly promoted staff who will maintain their current leave entitlement if the leave entitlement for the grade to which they are promoted is lesser than their current entitlement subject to a maximum entitlement of 30 days annual leave. Those staff with a current annual leave entitlement of greater than 30 days will have their leave entitlement reduced to 30 days.

On 15 December 2016, my Department issued a direction to the Chief Executives of Education and Training Boards to implement these arrangements.