TUI: Retention crisis in education down to 'bone-headed' government policies

Michael Gillespie said that despite the TUI repeatedly warning governments about the recruitment and retention crisis, much of their warnings were “ignored”.

The recruitment and retention crisis in education is because of “bone-headed” Government policies, the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) general secretary has said.

Michael Gillespie has accused the Government of “not paying the piper but wanting the tune played better”.

He also said that despite the TUI repeatedly warning governments about the recruitment and retention crisis, much of their warnings were “ignored”.

Addressing the TUI annual congress in Cork on Tuesday, he said: “The current recruitment and retention crisis is the direct result of the bone-headed, failed policy of successive governments of attempting to make the education system do more and more with less and less.

“Not paying the piper but wanting the tune, played better, longer, inclusively and more melodiously — no doubt to enhance general wellbeing.” 

Addressing warnings the union had given successive governments, he said: “The TUI provided a thorough, objective, and accurate analysis of the factors that were causing the crisis. We suggested a compendium of remedies and solutions to alleviate the situation.

“Some of our suggestions were taken on board but on several occasions not early enough in the school year. Indeed, much of our advice and most of our proposed solutions were ignored.” 

He said that according to a pre-TUI Congress survey, only 31% of teachers recruited post 2011 received full hours in their first year of teaching. This, he said, means that 7 of every 10 of those teachers had to “make do with part-time work, fragments of a job, low pay, precarity”.

Citing a survey released by by TUI on Monday, Mr Gillespie pointed out that only 13% of teachers received a permanent contract upon initial appointment. It meant 87% had no creditworthiness, and could not hope to get a mortgage.

He also said that 33% of teachers took three years or more to secure full hours and therefore a full-time salary.

He said: “This looks and feels like professional hazing, initiation by humiliation.

“It is unacceptable in any circumstances, never mind when there is also a cost-of-living crisis and a recruitment crisis.

“The remedy is simple — give new teachers and teachers we want to bring home full-time jobs with full-time salaries, so that they have some chance of meeting their financial commitments.

“To compete in this global market for teachers we need to reimagine the whole recruitment process for our schools.” 

He said that in order to retain teachers and to deal with what he described as the “pastoral, curricular and administrative needs” of students the teaching profession needs more posts of responsibility in schools.

He said the TUI has obtained figures from the Department of Education that show the “catastrophic drop”, which he said had been “engineered by government” in the number of posts of responsibilities available in schools on the department’s payroll.

He said that, for example, in 2009 there were 3,730 senior assistant principals, but by 2022 this figure had dropped to 2,653.

He also pointed out that there were 5,493 junior assistant principals in 2009, but that figure had dropped 43% to 3,106.

Before ending his address to responding applause from delegates, he said that factors that inhibit entry and incentivize exit are “as clear as day”.

He said: “The hidden work of preparation reflection and assessment that is over and above class contact is not recognized.

“This essential work, alongside all that is done to support and build relationships with students, takes time and resources which are not made available to teachers and other staff in our education system.

“The real work done, and real time spent outside class time must be recognized for the good it does. We can have a world-class education system, but change is needed.”