Secondary school teachers’ support for strike action if benchmarking does not satisfy pay demands has become increasingly clear as their annual conferences continue today.
Pay issues are likely to monopolise the second day of the INTO, the TUI and the ASTI conferences today.
The Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) delegates yesterday voted unanimously to prepare contingency plans for industrial action should the benchmarking body’s report fail to deliver the union’s pay claims.
Meanwhile the Teachers' Union of Ireland (TUI) warned it would get tough if benchmarking proves to be a disappointment.
Speaking at the first day of the TUI conference in Cork, both the president, Mr John MacGabhann, and the general secretary, Mr Jim Dorney, said unless they received substantial union members are likely to opt for industrial action next September.
In Donegal, the Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland (ASTI) confirmed its staunch position, voting by more than two to one to stay out of talks on supervision and substitution until the Government deals with its 30 per cent pay claim.
Despite reports of internal disputes over its pay strategy, an emergency motion to rescind the union’s decision to stay out the pay talks was rejected by 264 to 126 votes.
Meanwhile the Minister for Education, Dr Woods, got a rough reception from delegates the ASTI conference yesterday. The Minister was heckled by delegates as he urged them to re-enter talks.
Former ASTI general secretary, Mr Kieran Mulvey was also booed and heckled as he called on delegates to rejoin the ICTU. The chief executive of the Labour Relations Commission said also the union should review its current industrial action.
Dr Woods was greeted with a warmer reaction from the TUI earlier when he promised the Government would boost its school building programme.