The Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has voted to back the Croke Park deal in a reballot. Overall, 76 per cent of TUI second-level members endorsed the deal. As expected, the vote was tighter at third-level where 55 per cent backed the deal.
The Department of Education warned lecturers in the institute of technology sector last year that they faced redundancy unless the TUI signed up.
Last night’s ballot result will intensify the pressure on the Irish Federation of University Teachers . The federation is the only teaching union which has still to endorse it.
The department has signalled its readiness to impose pay cuts on lecturers who are federation members unless they endorse the agreement.
The department’s threat raises the possibility of a two-tier pay structure in colleges with differing academic contracts for federation and non-federation members.
The Croke Park deal provides for no pay cuts and no forced redundancies until 2014 in return for additional productivity and modernisation measures.
Federation members and two teaching unions (the TUI and ASTI, the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland) voted decisively against the deal last year. However, ASTI also backed it in a reballot earlier this year.
