Cork school staff 'happy' to return to work, but ready to strike again if necessary

The secretary of a Cork city school has said she is “looking forward to getting back to normal” this week, but warned that union members will have “no bother going back out again” to the picket line if their demands are not met.

School secretaries and caretakers resume work today as negotiations between the Fórsa union and the Government commence from Wednesday afternoon.

Industrial action, which was taken by almost 3,000 Fórsa members across the country and was stood down on Friday evening, saw school secretaries and caretakers remove their labour to take to the picket line for seven days.

Improved conditions being sought included access to a public-service pension scheme and other entitlements, such as bereavement leave and critical-illness leave.

On Friday, Fórsa said an agreement had been reached at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to bring the current strike to an end. It said action would be withdrawn to allow the implementation of the agreement, a key element of which is a Government commitment to negotiate comparable pension entitlements for school secretaries and caretakers.

Speaking to The Echo, Mary Murphy, secretary at Beaumont Boys’ National School, said she is hopeful the issues will be resolved quickly.

She said: “It happened so fast, when we left the picket on Friday, we were all saying we’d be back on Monday, but I’m looking forward to getting back to normal.

“It was always the case that we were never going to accept an ‘if’, it had to be a ‘when’, and we’ve gotten the ‘when’.

“We’re hoping now that we can definitely get the leave, the bereavement and critical illness, on par with our colleagues, and then the pensions. We have full faith in Fórsa that they will negotiate a pension that is [comparable] for us.

“We’re hoping that it will be resolved in a matter of a few weeks at the longest. We were very firm that we won’t be taking no for an answer. If Fórsa aren’t happy with what they’re offering, we have no bother going back out again,” Ms Murphy said.

Noreen O’Callaghan, secretary at Watergrasshill National School, told The Echo that the suspension of the week-long industrial action is a “monumental achievement” for secretaries and caretakers across the country.

“I’m very proud of everyone. It goes to show that there is power in numbers,” said Ms O’Callaghan.

“We’re very pleased that this is finally happening, we’ve proven what can be done. The details will have to be finalised, but hopefully the pay structure will now be aligned with the SNAs — that’s the main thing — and that we will get bereavement leave and critical illness leave, so people can grieve their loved ones and people who are sick won’t have to go to work after their treatment.

“It’s what we deserve. We do the work, [and] the support we received is phenomenal,” she added.

“It is such a monumental achievement — blood, sweat, and tears have gone into this, and we’ve done it.

“I don’t think it’s going to matter how long [negotiations] go on for — the strike has been stood down, so we need to spend the time to get it right.

“All eyes have been on Ireland for the last week, it has been shoulder to the wheel. This hasn’t happened overnight. We wouldn’t have stood down our strike unless we got [confirmation of negotiations] in writing.

“This has been so empowering and uplifting. I am so proud to have been a part of it. I’m so happy to be going back to work, to pick up where I left off with all the staff and kids.”

Andy Pike, head of education at Fórsa, said that the union’s members are hopeful of reaching a resolution to the dispute by October.

“Everybody is very pleased with the outcome, it commits the Government to negotiating and delivering pensions for secretaries and caretakers in schools that are comparable in terms of entitlements with teachers and SNAs,” he said.

“All of our members are extremely pleased with this development, and are happy they have been listened to.

“Negotiations will go privately, but we hope it won’t take too long. Some of the issues are straightforward and some of the issues are much more complicated, but we hope we will have news within a few weeks.”

Lord Mayor school visits

Meanwhile, school visits to almost 140 schools across the city and county by Fianna Fáil councillor Fergal Dennehy, Lord Mayor of Cork, will commence on Wednesday, following confirmation of their postponement last week. Mr Dennehy said that the annual event was postponed in solidarity with those seeking improved working conditions.

“It was always the plan [that visits would commence] as soon as the secretaries and caretakers are back in situ,” he said.

“Given the significance of the school visits, I wouldn’t have felt comfortable if everything wasn’t in place.

“I am delighted that all sides are talking and will now go into negotiations.”