Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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591.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if, in relation to the need for pay parity for those teachers who qualified post-2011, she will ensure that this pay parity is budgeted for in budget 2025; the actions her Department has taken to try to resolve this issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30938/24]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Pay and workplace reform measures for public servants have been governed by a framework of public service pay agreements for a number of years with the new Public Service Agreement (PSA) in place until June 2026. The value of public pay deals to the Government and the taxpayer is ensuring that pay costs are managed in a sustainable and orderly way and in a climate of industrial peace. By and large public pay agreements have delivered on these objectives over the last 12 years.

The matter of new entrant pay is a cross-sectoral issue not just an issue for the education sector alone. The Government has supported the gradual negotiated repeal of the FEMPI legislation having due regard to the priority to improve public services and in recognition of the essential role played by public servants. This has included the introduction of two increment skips for new entrant grades across the sector which means that they move up the pay scale quicker.

In addition, in terms of new entrant teachers, Building Momentum provided that new entrant teachers will skip point 12 on the pay scale. This introduced a third such increment skip for new entrant teachers and the agreement included that the parties “agreed that this measure will resolve in full the remaining salary scale issues pertaining to new entrant teachers”.

In respect of teacher allowances withdrawn under FEMPI legislation, amendments have also been agreed under collective agreements which have seen the value of certain allowances being integrated into “new entrant” teacher pay. Examples are the equivalent of an honour’s primary degree allowance and the PME allowance for post-primary teachers.