From ventilation to violence, unions push for policies to promote safety of school staff

Fórsa's conference heard that 500 SNAs were assaulted at work in the last five years, while the INTO has resolved to create guidelines for dealing with violence against primary teachers. Picture: iStock

The lack of guidance and clear policies on health and safety in the education sector has led to “wholly inadequate” situations for the workforce, according to Fórsa union members.

A motion passed at the trade union’s education division conference heard that whileif it  some schools were hugely proactive in putting such safety measures in place during the pandemic, there were also incidents where boards of management “penny-pinched” and refused to provide PPE or equipment to resolve ventilation issues.