The recent ASTI decision to ballot its 17,000 members on the Labour Court clarification of its recommendations for a settlement of their dispute has come after a very bruising and prolonged campaign for a 30 per cent salary increase. While the time lapse to the ballot date will give some time for reasoned consideration of the Labour Court offer, the Easter Conference of ASTI will be a very heated and emotional event. The conference will have a considerable bearing on the outcome of the proposed ballot. So too, I fear, will the recent media focus and media analysis of both the "defeat" of the union and the "tactical skills" of the Government and the Taoiseach.

Ultimately, talk of winners and losers will be counterproductive. History has taught us, again and again, that there can never be lasting peace where one party to a conflict remains frustrated, resentful or brow-beaten. Meaningful negotiations must address the key issues of concern as far as this is possible. In this case, the Labour Court has indicated that teachers have a good and deserving case. For all our sakes, I hope that the ASTI will accept the court's recommendations, return to the benchmarking process and pursue its claim through the machinery established under the PPF.

I am particularly hopeful that ASTI members will set aside feelings of hurt and anger and grasp the real opportunities provided by the proposed review body that is being established to conduct a comprehensive review of all non-pay aspects of education. This proposed review has the potential to address some of the major grievances of both teachers and teaching.

The secretariat of the ASTI is very experienced, with a highly regarded knowledge of the industrial relations framework. Perhaps, this experience has not been fully appreciated recently. By leaving ICTU and rejecting the benchmarking provisions of the PPF, the ASTI became somewhat isolated. Yet the education partners did understand the nature of many of their grievances and would have assisted in seeking a resolution of the dispute.

A decision to enter battle against the Government while at the same time threatening the critical interests of potential allies was difficult to comprehend. Threatening the examination prospects of students also threatened the interests of the other education partners. This has been seen as an unwise move. As a friend recently said: "Never put your head in a noose unless you are holding the rope at the other end!"

I could be criticised for commenting on this dispute. Yet, as general secretary of a concerned management authority, I have an interest in harmony in our schools, a productive and dedicated workforce, a contented student population and a renewal of a healthy partnership between management, parents and teachers at school level.

It is therefore essential that we look at the potential of what has been achieved, rather than focus on the hurt and anger of recent weeks. Charlie Lennon has achieved more than is realised, in spite of other forces that have not always listened to the voice of experience in these matters.

The vocational professions, such as teaching, have traditionally attracted people of high idealism. They now have a feeling of being sidelined and undervalued by modern society. Nurses, teachers and junior doctors have all been the focus of industrial unrest over the past few years. Significantly, this industrial unrest by the "caring professions" has happened at a time when tribunals have unearthed a less-than-idealistic other world where greed and the pursuit of material gain was the only game in town.

Teaching as a career may now be increasingly less attractive, and the circumstances of the recent dispute will not enhance the attractiveness of the profession. As a society, we must now take stock of what we value most. Our children take their values from their parents and others in positions of authority, such as teachers. If the profession does not attract people of the highest calibre, society will be the biggest loser. Real resources must be channelled into our schools, particularly in the area of in-service training and the re-skilling of teachers and through a whole range of meaningful support services which can assist teachers, teaching and school life in general.

School management recognises the dedication of teachers. Teachers spend much non-class time enhancing pupils' self-esteem and supporting students through examinations. There is now a fear that these activities will become "no-go" areas for ASTI members. A school is a people organisation, not a factory. Not all of the present unrest is being fuelled by a pay demand. Much of the unrest centres on the lack of perceived value of teachers in society and the lack of real supports for our schools.

Yet, this is an experience we all feel in a society which is increasingly more materialistic. Maybe teachers are becoming less innocent and now want "a piece of the action" in terms of adequate remuneration from the thriving Celtic Tiger. Perhaps the teaching profession was one of the last bastions of the old-world values where job satisfaction meant more than a hefty salary.

Are we therefore witnessing the end of an age and the slow decline of a set of cultural values with idealism at the core? If this is the case, I fear for our future as a society.

The Irish Vocational Education Association is one of the second-level management authorities which has had its schools disrupted by the on-going industrial unrest over the past few months. We, too, have been frustrated in our objectives, one of which is the provision of a quality education service to our students.

Presently, we are establishing a partnership and modernisation process in our vocational education committees as required in Paragraph 1.4 of the PPF. In doing so, we are involving unions in the decision-making process - a major leap of faith by management.

We, too, have requirements in terms of employee productivity and accountability, so that every element of our educational sector is as professional as possible. This partnership process may help dilute the present confrontational model of industrial relations to be replaced with a more understanding, collaborative approach to resolving issues together.

Partnership is far preferable to confrontation. Our recent economic boom has resulted from real partnership at national level. The way we resolve problems and differences is also changing for the better.

This particular dispute can move closer to resolution if all the education partners have a chance to participate in the proposed review body, which will focus on all non-pay aspects of education. There are opportunities to be grasped if, in the words of John Lennon, we "give peace a chance".