Saturday's letters page in the Irish Times included correspondence on why it's time to value school secretaries. It's expected that Fórsa's School Secretaries branch will be serving notice of strike action to the Department of Education on Thursday.

In the Sunday papers, the Business Post reports a record spending boost for health, an inspection of 66,000 employers by Revenue, and new Irish language requirements for public service workers, while the Sunday Times reports that Ireland’s first statutory sick pay scheme is on the way next year (Senator Marie Sherlock writes Sick pay is not an extravagance, it should be a fundamental right for all workers in today's Indo).

The Sindo led with news of talk of lockdown within 10 days, although today's papers stick with the emphasis on Level 3 for now. The Irish Times reports today that regional restrictions rather than a short, strict national lockdown may be the next step taken by the Government if action is needed to halt sharply rising Covid-19 case numbers.

Elsewhere, members of Fórsa, SIPTU and the INMO today enter day 15 of their daily protest at the Sisters of Charity HQ in Sandymount, as they campaign for the implementation of a Labour Court recommendation for a fair redundancy, and the Irish Times reports on a claim for pay improvement by senior nurses.

Meanwhile, Aer Lingus chief Sean Doyle is to take the helm at British Airways, prompting the Irish Examiner to headline the news in the most Cork manner possible, and concerns are raised over local authority funding.

Your Zen this morning features something old and something new.

The photo above, of Russian playwright and novelist Leonid Andreyev with his second wife, Anna Denisevich, was taken in Finland 110 years ago. Click on the image to learn more.

Kelly Lee Owens' album Inner Song has been keeping me company for the past week, and good company it is too. Here's a taste.

Have a good week, stay safe.

Niall