Fórsa members across the country will have seen their union’s colours and logo in every county, city and town in Ireland over the past two weeks. Around 2,800 school secretaries and caretakers took indefinite strike action from 28th August. After seven days of strike action the union signed an agreement with the Department of Education at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) last Friday.

In Dublin, day one of the strike saw more than a thousand secretaries and caretakers descend on the Department of Public Expenditure to make sure their call - for pensions, fair leave, and a pay agreement for caretakers - was heard loud and clear.  

The crowd was addressed by branch chairs Luisa Carty and David Hearne, union leaders, politicians and committee members. Blanket media coverage put the strike firmly on the political agenda. Watch a video of the demo here. 

Department of Public Expenditure rally, Thursday 28th August.

Regional rallies followed on day two. Close to 400 workers gathered in Athlone at the Department of Education. Drums pounded, megaphones wailed, chants rolled back and forth. The pure energy was impossible to ignore. On Dublin’s Marlborough Street, hundreds of members lined the street between the Department of Education and the Pro Cathedral. Chants of ‘Hey Jack, we’re not going back’ rang out for more than three hours. 

School pickets 

On Monday of last week, members faced their third day of indefinite strike, this time picketing outside their own schools. For many this was one of the hardest days. Without the energy of collective gathering, many feared the isolation of standing alone outside their workplace.  

Their anxiety proved short-lived.  

Department of Education protest, Friday 29th August.

The overwhelming support from teachers, parents, SNAs and school communities provided a jolt of energy that grew throughout the week. Irish social media was flooded with images of Fórsa members the length and breadth of the country. Click here for some of the many photos sent in to Fórsa.

By Tuesday, pledges in support of the campaign had increased by 10,000, a figure which grew and grew in the days that followed. By last Friday more than 65,000 people had signed the pledge of support for the campaign. 

Political pressure continued to build as members picketed the constituency offices of government TDs. Members engaged respectfully with representatives and ministers at their local offices, outlining the basic entitlements they were fighting for, providing an opportunity for those TDs to publicly express their support. 

SNAs and Teachers supporting their colleagues outside Ennistymon Community Schools, Co Clare.

A joint statement by the teaching unions, on Thursday, urged the government to resolve the dispute before schools nationwide were forced to close. By that evening, the Minister for Education was calling on both sides to come to the table “without preconditions.” Fórsa resolved not to enter any talks in the absence of a guarantee that pensions would form part of the conversation.

Breakthrough 

Constituency office pickets resumed last Friday, the seventh day of strike action. A week of picketing, strong local and national media coverage and massive public support had strengthened members’ resolve.  

More than 300 secretaries and caretakers travelled to Jack Chambers' constituency office in Dublin. It was clear to every passerby, or anyone who watched the news coverage that day, that the game was up. A lunchtime interview with the Minister of Education on RTÉ radio appeared to provide an opening to talks. 

Protest outside Minister Jack Chambers TD's constituency office, Dublin, Tuesday 2nd September.

On Friday night Fórsa Head of Education Andy Pike confirmed an agreement had been signed, committing the Government to negotiate ‘comparable pension entitlements’ for school secretaries and caretakers.  

In a communication to members issued that evening, Andy described the agreement as a breakthrough. It marked the first time the State has formally accepted the principle that school secretaries and caretakers should not be excluded from pension entitlements comparable to those available to teachers and SNAs. 

He paid tribute to the striking members: “This is your win, your campaign, your achievement. Without your determination and relentless organisation, we could never have gotten to this point.  

“Your pursuit of fairness and equal treatment has defined this strike. The unprecedented public support demonstrated that the immense value of your work is recognised all over this country.” 

Rally outside Leinster House, Tuesday 2nd September.

Talks got underway this week and will resume later this month. Speaking to media outside the WRC on Wednesday, Andy expressed optimism that the Government will honour the agreement: “We were very clear what we were looking for. The agreement was signed. Now it’s time to deliver, so we go in here with a sense of optimism."

“We’re determined to do right by the people who put us in here, who took the campaign that far. We’ll be here as long as it takes,” he said. 

As the dust settles we’ve one last video to share - one that captures the colour, the spirit, and the sheer energy from the pickets and protests that shook the country last week.  Watch it here.

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