Reduced pay and low hours driving graduates away from teaching - TUI

By piofficer, Thursday, 12th November 2015 | 0 comments

The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has warned that reduced pay for recent entrants to the profession and low hour contracts are resulting in the teaching profession becoming increasingly less attractive to the best young graduates.

Ahead of the general election, TUI is calling on political parties and independent candidates to commit to a full equalisation of pay. The alternative will see a drain of the best young graduates away from the profession at a time when they are most needed.

Speaking today, TUI President Gerry Quinn said:

‘We are hearing more frequently that it is becoming increasingly difficult for schools to attract new teachers in certain subject areas. Graduates who had intended to undertake a masters in teaching and, increasingly, qualified teachers across a range of subjects are routinely finding better paid and more secure employment in industry.

At the moment, the problem would appear to be particularly pronounced in subjects such as home economics, modern languages, the science subjects and Irish. However, with the recruitment of considerably more teachers required (around 3,500 new full-time positions) over the next ten years at second level due to rising student numbers, the situation will spread across the full breadth of subjects unless the profession is made more attractive.

This is a damaging legacy of discriminatory, reduced pay rates for new teachers and a rampant casualisation of the profession. While the salary scales of all new entrants to the public service were targeted, reductions for teachers’ pay were far greater than what applied to most public servants.

Those who entered the profession from February 2012 have been placed on a severely reduced pay rate which sees them generally earn 21.7% less than those appointed prior to 2011.

To make matters worse, for several years now second level teachers have been forced to apply for fragments of jobs with no guarantee of being retained from year to year. Such teachers experience income poverty, often struggling and sometimes failing to pay the rent. 30% or more of our second-level teachers are employed on a temporary, part-time basis, and that this proportion grows to 50% for those under 35.

It is little surprise that graduates who now qualify in certain disciplines/subjects are reluctant to undertake the required additional two year postgraduate masters in education (at a cost of around €10,000 in fees alone) when they can earn considerably more in industry, start work two years earlier and enjoy full hours, better job security and promotional prospects from the start of their career.

For a variety of compelling educational, economic and social reasons, the quality of teachers entering the profession must be maintained. Key to this is a return to equal pay for equal work.

Ahead of the general election, TUI is calling on political parties and independent candidates to commit to a full equalisation of pay. The alternative will see a drain of the best young graduates away from the profession at a time when they are most needed.’

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