LAST UPDATE | 27 Jun 2024

THE TEACHERS’ UNION of Ireland has said a €2,000 bonus to newly qualified teachers after their first year on the job will “not tackle the root causes of the recruitment and retention crisis”.

In a statement, a Department of Education spokesperson this €2,000 payment is only intended to be in place for the upcoming school year, and that the payment will be made next year.

The spokesperson added that the €2,000 payment will be subject to statutory deductions.

It was also remarked that Budget 2024 included the introduction of a “bursary type payment” for newly qualified teachers graduating with a professional master’s of education (PME) and that it will benefit up to 2,000 teachers.

While the general secretary of the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) Michael Gillespie described the move as “positive”, he added that “in isolation, the measure will have a negligible effect on the crisis, which has worsened greatly in recent years”.

He added: “It has been reported that the incentive would operate only for a single year, which means it would regrettably be just another sticking plaster measure.”

Gillespie added that it is the “students who are losing out the most as a result of this crisis” as some schools have been forced to limit access to the full range of subjects as a result of teacher shortages.

The TUI general secretary said the union has “made it clear” to the Department of Education what measures are needed to tackle shortages.

These include increasing teaching allocations to allow more full-time, permanent jobs from initial appointment.

A TUI study carried out in March found only 35% of those recently appointed received a contract of full hours upon initial appointment, and just 12% were offered a permanent position on appointment.

He also called for the two-year professional masters of education required to become a second level teacher to be cut down to one year.

Gillespie added that red tape that “hinders Irish teachers working overseas in returning” should be “eliminated, including awarding full incremental credit for their service abroad”.

He also cited the need to tackle the “ever-increasing workload, particularly that of a bureaucratic nature” that is a “demoralising factor” to teachers.

The study carried out by the TUI in March also found that over a quarter (27%) of teachers do not believe they will still be in the profession in a decade.

Of those respondents who had been a teacher for less than ten years, over half (51%) said they would consider leaving Ireland to teach in another country.

Of those who said they would consider a move abroad to teach in another country, the top three motivating factors were disillusionment with teaching in Ireland, a want to save money, and the unavailability/unaffordability of accommodation in Ireland.

Meanwhile, 81% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that teacher recruitment and retention difficulties in their school has had a negative effect on the service to students.

A Department of Education spokesperson said “the vast majority of sanctioned teacher positions are filled” and that the “rate of resignation and retirements is low by any standard”.

“The Department continues to engage closely with education stakeholders to develop further, innovative measures to address teacher supply issues,” added that statement.