Fórsa has said a survey of school principals is “not nearly enough” to stop a ballot for industrial action by school secretaries going ahead in the autumn.

The union was responding to the announcement by the Department of Education and Skills that it is conducting a survey of schools on the costs of meeting a pay claim by Fórsa for school secretaries and caretakers.

Fórsa Head of Education Andy Pike said: “We note that the DES survey on school secretaries and caretakers pay requires the provision of detailed pay data that in many cases will have to be supplied to school principals by the secretary themselves. The irony of this will not be lost on many of our members.

“The survey alone does nothing to improve the low pay and insecure employment of school secretaries and caretakers.

“Fórsa continues to campaign for the application of public service pay, conditions and pensions for all grant-funded secretaries and caretakers.

“We’ll proceed with the industrial action ballot scheduled to open on 26th August next and will continue to prepare our members for the commencement of industrial action in mid-September.

“If the department is serious about resolving this issue it must commit to a new agreement providing access to public service pay scales, conditions, pensions and year-long secure employment as is the case for all other staff in the schools sector,” he said.