Thousands of teachers stage walkout
Wednesday November 25 2009
More than 5,000 teachers angered by possible Budget cuts staged a protest outside the Department of Education during yesterday's national strike.
The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) claimed the public sector walkout sent a clear message to the Government that workers wanted meaningful talks on an equitable plan for economic recovery.
Sheila Nunan, incoming general secretary of the primary teachers' union, called on members to ignore attempts to divide and conquer workers.
She told the crowd on Marlborough Street, in Dublin's north inner city, that crude attempts to separate public and private sector workers would fail.
"Efforts to pitch the low paid against average-paid workers will equally fail," said Ms Nunan. "The agenda of trying to set the unemployed against those with jobs is also doomed to failure.
"The INTO wants a fair solution to this crisis, one that protects employment, homes, services and salaries."
The union, which claimed up to 1,500 primary teachers joined the march, maintained the day demonstrated the unity by workers from all unions.
Meanwhile, ASTI, which represents 18,000 teaching staff in secondary schools, said teachers do not want to be on strike. But general secretary John White warned that further industrial action was likely if the Government refused to listen to almost a quarter of a million public sector workers.
"Teachers don't want this strike. But the Government has failed to discuss with us a fair way of dealing with the crisis," he said.
