Minister Simon Harris has committed to working with unions involved in higher education, stating that “we can’t do this if we don’t do it in partnership.” The minister made the commitment at a webinar event hosted yesterday (Thursday), attended by more than 200 people.

The event, Future Forward: Investing in Education in a Post-Covid World, was jointly hosted by Education Futures, a coalition of groups advocating for greater investment in higher education and the education group of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU).

Minister Harris indicated his intention to select five or six substantial policy areas for stakeholders to work on together over the coming years, with a commonly agreed end-goal.

The event aimed to highlight the urgent need to improve the level of state funding for higher education, and to discuss some of the existing problems in Ireland’s higher education sector, in addition to the particular challenges presented by the Covid pandemic.

Education Futures is comprised of the USI, the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT), Fórsa, SIPTU, the TUI and the Irish Secondary Students Union (ISSU).

Improving access

One key area of focus is making further and higher education more accessible. In context of the once radical move to make secondary school free for all, Minister Harris said, "I do genuinely believe my role is to remove barriers, to help individuals to reach their full potential."

Other commitments by the minister included facilitating the development of more college-owned student accommodation, as there’s “currently an over-reliance on the private market.” Overhauling the existing SUSI grant system, and liaising with stakeholders in Northern Ireland, signalling a potential future cross-border university.

Other speakers at the event included President of the Union of Students in Ireland, Lorna Fitzpatrick; Director General of the Irish Universities Association, Jim Miley; and Co-ordinator of ICTU’s education sector group, Macdara Doyle.

Macdara highlighted existing issues in the higher education sector from a workers’ perspective, explaining it’s an extremely pressured and highly precarious environment to work in.

He cited a report that identified 5.5% of staff engaged in unpaid overtime in 2008. This spiked almost five-fold over the proceeding ten years, with a figure of 24.5% in 2018.

"Decent work must be the hallmark of a new higher and further education sector,” he said.

Lorna Fitzpatrick, president of the Union of Students in Ireland emphasised the need for a comprehensive, publicly funded higher education system. Expressing the importance of sustained investment throughout the student experience, Lorna also stated that "Access is not about getting in the front door of college, but ensuring every student can excel and reach their full potential while they are there."

Jim Miley, director general of the Irish Universities Association, expressed the need for a commitment from the State to provide the level of investment to students and higher education bodies necessary to achieve a globally competitive standard qualification.

The event was organised and moderated by Fórsa lead organiser and chair of Education Futures, Kevin Donoghue.

Social media coverage from the event can be reviewed by searching #EducationFutures on Twitter.

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