Delegates at Fórsa’s Education Division conference called on the education department to quickly implement a job evaluation scheme recently won by the union, and to extend the agreement to other education staff.

Speaking at the conference, Siobhan O’Callaghan welcomed the agreement to implement a job evaluation scheme for clerical and admin staff in institutes of technology, technological universities and Mary Immaculate College.

“We balloted for industrial action, which brought our employers to the correct conclusion that we were determined to have them honour the commitment they gave in 2015, that they would introduce a job evaluation scheme,” she said.

Fórsa has since met education department officials to discuss the implementation of the scheme, and the union has set out detailed proposals on how it should be designed and managed. The scheme will cover library, clerical, administrative and support staff in higher education.

“Now we want to see the scheme implemented properly and quickly, and we want it extended to other parts of the education sector, particularly where there is a need to recognise the additional responsibilities foisted on our members during the public service moratorium,” said Siobhan.

Job evaluation is an internationally-recognised method of independently and fairly assessing roles, and ensuring that they are graded to reflect the ‘size’ of the job – the skills, responsibilities, knowledge and educational attainment that a worker brings to their daily work.