Protests over pension and pay called off outside Kilkenny schools, as new talks to commence

A number of schools across the county have been the scene of industrial action in recent days, with protests taking place at the school gates.

School staff who are members of the Forsà Trade Union, had been on official strike to seek better pay and conditions. These members are employed as school secretaries and caretakers. More than 2,800 staff across 2,300 schools had withdrawn from work for seven days, until the action ended on Friday.

Goretti Hennessy, a secretary at St Nicholas National School, Windgap was supported by local councillor Joe Lyons and Carlow-Kilkenny TD Catherine O’ Callaghan last week. They were also joined by staff members and parents of the students.

Staff at St Nicholas NS, Windgap were joined by Cllr Joe Lyons and TD Catherine O'Callaghan

Cllr Joe Lyons told the Kilkenny People that the work of school secretaries across the country goes way beyond the job description. He said secretarys are are the first port of call for every student. Apart from secretary work, they provide assistance for every problem, no matter what it entails.
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TD Catherine O’ Callaghan said the secretaries and caretakers had the support of the general public.

On Friday, Fórsa agreed to withdraw strike action by school secretaries and caretakers after an agreement was reached at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) to engage in a process to resolve the dispute. The union said t the key element of the agreement is a Government commitment to negotiate comparable pension entitlements for school secretaries and caretakers.