Education Minister welcomes suspension of strike by support staff ahead of further discussions

A strike by education support workers was planned for Monday and Tuesday, but the two unions NIPSA and GMB have now agreed to suspend action pending further discussion on resolving the ongoing pay and grading dispute.

The members of the Unite union are only suspending their strike on Monday to allow space for further negotiations, which are also scheduled to take place on Monday, to find an acceptable solution to the conflict.

In a statement, Education Minister Paul Givan said: “I welcome the positive development that unions have agreed to suspend strike action next week to allow for intensive negotiations aimed at resolving the ongoing pay and grading dispute. Importantly, this means that many schools that were planning to close on Monday and Tuesday will now be able to open as normal.”

The Minister continued: “I fully recognise the outstanding role of support staff across the education sector. Without their outstanding commitment and hard work, those who most depend on the services they provide would not receive the vital support they need and deserve.

“I am committed to working with the unions to find a solution and remain confident that progress can be made. I will work with my colleagues in management to ensure that is the outcome.”

In April, it was announced that classroom assistants, school bus drivers and other education support staff could go on strike during the summer exam period.

Unite said the Stormont budget’s failure to provide anything for low-paid teachers created “a growing risk that the Northern Ireland Government will launch industrial action at the height of the schools’ exam period”.

The union had previously said that a pay and grading review that the Department for Education was due to carry out in 2018 to address low pay and inequality was expected to remain unfunded for the seventh year in a row, threatening an even worse staffing crisis in the sector.