Previous pay and education service cuts influenced strength of no vote

The strength of the vote against the Croke Park II deal by primary teachers has been put down to anger over a range of previous pay and education service cuts.

While the no result announced by the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) was not totally unexpected, the fact that 69.5% of those who voted have rejected the plan is surprising.

It was expected to be a far tighter result, but INTO general secretary Sheila Nunan said the prospect of further pay cuts on top of previous cuts imposed on teachers was a key factor.

“The cumulative impact of five years of severe education cuts, the worst effects of which teachers were trying to mitigate for their pupils, also contributed to the outcome,” she said.

Ms Nunan said teachers had complied with the terms of the first Croke Park Agreement completely, delivering productivity and embracing change despite the backdrop of education cutbacks.

Ms Nunan was a key negotiator in talks at the Labour Relations Commission that led to the proposals in late February, as vice-chair of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (Ictu) public services committee.

The INTO executive made no recommendation on how members should vote and a little more than 21,300 — almost two thirds — of the union’s 33,000 members voted on the proposals.

Ms Nunan urged the Government not to resort to legislation cutting pay, arguing that changes to the promissory note deal and potential changes to Ireland’s bailout repayment schedule merit the financial adjustment needed by 2015 to be reconsidered.

The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) has also rejected the deal, as expected following the recommendation of its standing committee and this month’s annual convention. Those of its 17,000 members who voted have backed the recommendation and voted no by an 85%-15% margin, the union announced yesterday evening.

ASTI general secretary Pat King said the result, based on ballots returned by 62% of members, reflected the deep anger of teachers at the unfairness of the proposals.

More than 80% of Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) voters rejected the deal in a ballot result announced at the end of March.

Its annual congress and the ASTI convention both voted earlier this month to ballot members on possible industrial action if the Government tries to impose cuts on them.

The deal would have seen a partial claw-back of previous cuts to newer teachers’ pay, but those earning over €65,000 would have suffered a 5.5% cut, rising to 8% for those on over €80,000.

Payments of up to €1,800 a year for supervision work were to be axed and the duties made obligatory.

The union votes have caused a serious threat of industrial unrest in colleges — with the Irish Federation of University Teachers announcing a strong no vote on Monday — and second-level schools if the Government does pursue the legislative route for cuts.

The INTO executive will meet later this week, probably on Friday, to decide its position after today’s Ictu meeting on Croke Park II.