It seems increasingly unlikely that financial penalties will be applied to thousands of second level teachers who plan to go on strike next week. On Friday a spokeswoman for Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe said it was not constructive to talk about financial penalties being applied. In 2016 the Government imposed financial penalties on members of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) after they were considered to have “repudiated” the public service agreement by taking industrial action. Members of the ASTI will not be involved in the strike next week. The union says ASTI members would be paid even if their school was closed as a result of the TUI strike.

Source: The Irish Times January 31, 2020 13:54 UTC