Mullingar teachers hold protest to highlight pay inequality

Teachers at Mullingar Community College staged a lunch time protest this afternoon to hightlight what the Teachers Union of Ireland (TUI) says is the “continuing injustice of pay discrimination” for those who entered the profession since 2011.

Despite the upturn in the economy, teachers and lecturers who entered the profession since 2011 are still paid at a lower rate than their colleagues for carrying out the same work.

TUI is insisting that the current engagement between unions and the Government must resolve the issue of pay discrimination.

Speaking outside Mullingar Community College, teacher Simon Tighe said:

‘A recent TUI survey found that 46% of post-2011 entrants to the profession did not believe that they would still be in the profession in ten years’ time. However, if pay equality was restored, 94% said that they would remain. Quite clearly, this continuing injustice poses a serious threat to the quality of graduates attracted to the profession.

“It has always been unacceptable that one teacher be paid less than another for carrying out the same work. Pay discrimination has completely undermined the profession and has had a devastating impact on morale in staffrooms. Unsurprisingly, it has also led to a crisis in the recruitment and retention of teachers, which inevitably impairs the quality of service to students in terms of subject choice and consistency of provision.”