Tipperary councillor joins school staff on picket line over pension dispute
A Tipperary councillor has taken to the picket line to support striking school secretaries and caretakers, who began strike action this week as schools returned.
Sinn Féin councillor Annemarie Ryan joined secretaries and caretakers from schools in the Tipperary town area as they undertook strike action calling for access to public sector pensions and pay parity.
The local councillor said that schools wouldn’t be able to function without the work of secretaries and caretakers.
"They're the first to arrive and the last to leave school,” Cllr Ryan said.
"Proud to stand today with Tipperary school secretaries and caretakers here in Tipperary town. If you're in town, go and say hello to them, show them your support, it's not easy to stand on a picket line. Well done to them all,” she added.
The Sinn Féin representative has long been a supporter of the action, saying that workers deserve access to the same conditions as the people they work alongside.
"As I have highlighted in previous statements secretaries and caretakers deserve the same public sector worker status as the teachers and SNAs they work alongside every day; they deserve pension parity,” she said.
Caretakers and secretaries in schools all across the country began indefinite strike action on August 28, just as schools are set to return after the summer holidays.
The strike action centres on a row over access to public sector pensions for school staff, which was described by the Tipperary councillor as unfair.
Cllr Ryan said that the workers’ exclusion from the pension scheme is unfair and unjust, and said that they have her full support in their strike action.