Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 43 and 44 together.

My Department is committed to ensuring that grant-funded school caretakers will be afforded the opportunity to avail of a similar agreement that was offered to grant-funded school secretaries under the February 2022 WRC agreement. A deficit of data on caretaker terms and conditions despite a number of surveys had meant this was not possible at the time.

There has been ongoing engagement between officials within my Department and the Fórsa union regarding the development and implementation of a caretaker deal. Matters discussed have contributed to a clearer understanding of the differences in existing terms and conditions of caretakers compared to secretaries and have been helpful in forming and developing a further survey which is to be issued to schools in the near future.

The survey is an internal exercise which will allow the Department to gather and examine up to date and robust data on caretaker's terms and conditions of work and verify working patterns of grant funded school caretakers. Once the survey has been issued and schools have returned their replies, the Department will then be in a position to progress this claim further.