Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 July 2023
265. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Education if she will investigate a claim for the revision of school secretary pay scales (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33542/23]
View answerI wish to confirm the Deputy that I have asked the relevant officials in the Payroll Division of my Department to investigate the individual case specified. I want to assure the Deputy that the officials have been in contact with the person concerned to address her concerns and are working to resolves her queries.
This case concerns an individual who is working as a secretary in two separate schools (i.e. has multiple employments as a secretary).
Circular 0036/2022 - Revision of Salaries and Annual Leave arrangements for School Secretaries employed in recognised primary and post primary schools issued in June 2022. It contained the payscale agreed with Fórsa for secretaries who choose to move to the new terms and conditions.
Under the terms of the Circular, each school was asked to identify the pay rate and annual leave that would apply should a secretary choose to move to the new terms and conditions and to indicate these to the secretary. This was to be done by the end of September 2022.
In the case of secretaries with multiple employments, each individual school was required to make an offer to the secretary who then had to accept each separate offer.
The relevant Payroll officials have confirmed that based on information returned by the two schools as part of a survey to gather data in advance of assimilation onto my Department’s payroll that the person concerned was made differing offers, one correct, one incorrect, by the respective schools. :
If a secretary holds multiple employment, works different hours in and is in receipt of different rates of pay from each school, a point on scale is assigned taking all employment data into account to identify a unified rate of pay
Letters issued to the two schools asking them both to make a revised offer (based on the unified rate) to the secretary concerned. The secretary has been given the opportunity to accept or reject these offers. If the offer is rejected, the secretary will return to their pre-September 2022 pay, terms and conditions before the initial acceptance of the offer under Circular 0036/2022.
I also wish to assure the Deputy that joining the secretaries who have opted to do so, to the Department’s payroll for 1st September 2023 in in full progress and on track to have those secretaries paid for the first pay date of 14th September 2023.
