Talks between Fórsa — the union representing school secretaries and caretakers — and the Department of Education and Youth have broken down, raising the prospect of further strike action. The discussions at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) focused on a long-running demand for pension parity and recognition of prior service.
According to Fórsa, the collapse comes after what it describes as the Department’s failure “to engage meaningfully with union proposals, including the recognition of previous service.”
Andy Pike, Fórsa’s head of education, warned that without proper credit for past service, many secretaries and caretakers — some with decades on the job — “stand to lose significant pension value.” He added: “The Department’s refusal to table a constructive proposal has now brought the process to an impasse. School secretaries and caretakers have shown extraordinary patience. But if progress continues to be blocked, we cannot – and will not – rule out further strike action.”
Fórsa says the “next step” is to refer the dispute to the Labour Court for a decision.
The breakdown follows a previous agreement in September when strike action was suspended after a commitment was made to negotiate “comparable pension entitlements.” That deal marked the first time the State formally accepted the principle that secretaries and caretakers should not be excluded from pensions on the same basis as teachers and SNAs.
Labour TD Eoghan Kenny has called on the government to intervene, describing the collapse of talks as “deeply disappointing” and saying the union’s members “have waited long enough.” He urged both the Minister for Education and the Minister for Public Expenditure to step in and “ensure that talks resume without delay.”
The dispute has put significant pressure on school communities. Around 2,800 secretaries and caretakers — across some 2,300 schools — withdrew their labour over several days last September, disrupting key functions like payroll, attendance, and school maintenance.
