A majority of special-needs assistants (SNAs) who are members of the Fórsa trade union have voted against a new Government plan aimed at professionalising the role.
The trade union said the result showed a “clear rejection” of the Government’s proposed plan, which would also ensure no school would lose more than one SNA per school year through redeployments.
The special-needs assistant workforce development plan was launched by Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton last month after more than two years of development, including a national survey which saw 13,000 SNAs take part.
The Department of Education previously said the plan aimed to “strengthen and support” SNAs through enhanced professional development and “greater role clarity”.
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It comprised a new circular on the role of the SNA, a revised contract template and a redeployment circular which Fórsa previously said gives “far greater job security than SNAs have had before”.
[ Schools will not lose more than one SNA per year under new redeployment plansOpens in new window ]
Under that circular, schools would not lose more than one SNA per year from the 2027-2028 school year onwards.
There will be no reduction in allocations in the coming school year after the Government was forced to abandon plans to reduce the number of SNAs across almost 200 schools following significant backlash earlier this year.
In advance of a ballot opening last month, Fórsa, which represents 18,000 of the estimated 25,000 SNAs currently working in Ireland, recommended its members vote in favour of the plan, saying it provided “steps forward”.
However, the ballot saw 60 per cent of voting members reject the roadmap.
Some 39 per cent of members voted in favour, while the overall turnout was just over 60 per cent, the trade union said on Wednesday evening.
Fórsa’s head of education, Andy Pike, said the “clear and decisive” result showed SNAs did not have confidence in the plan.
Pike said the union had conducted an “extensive consultation process” with members prior to the ballot opening.
“The views of SNAs were expressed very clearly throughout that process and in the ballot result, and their verdict is that the plan is deficient in a number of key areas,” he said.
Fórsa general secretary Kevin Callinan said the result did not “provide the basis for moving forward with the plan in its current form”, adding that it “clearly highlights” issues of concern for members.
Callinan said the union would assess the outcome in detail and determine the appropriate next steps.
In response, a spokesperson for the department said it had developed the plan with “SNAs, Fórsa and other key stakeholders”, adding that the trade union had recommended its acceptance to members.
The spokesperson added that stakeholders had “consistently called for a clearer workplace plan to support and strengthen the SNA role”.
“The department awaits feedback from Fórsa’s engagement with their members as to the reasons behind this outcome and is available to work to constructively address relevant issues.”
