In the public service we are overworked, underpaid and newly militant

Sir, – These politicians who danced the dance since before the summer and denied us public sector workers pay negotiations could not do our job. They could not multitask as we do.

They could not work with children with additional needs with the compassion and expertise we have.

Every primary school is understaffed. We have huge diversity and attempt to practise inclusion with consistent underfunding. We foolishly volunteer to run Cumann na mBunscoil, quiz and Comhaltas, basketball, choir ... the list is unending.

We supervise yards and classrooms for extended periods before instruction begins without pay. We do this and especially over and since the pandemic to accommodate working parents. We give unending hours of unpaid preparation time for teaching and learning outside of contact time with children.

By giving services at no cost all value has been removed.

We prop up a health “system” that cannot even be described as broken as there is no system. We act in place of speech and language therapists and occupational therapists. We have the qualifications of neither but so many children cannot learn without the benefits of these therapies so we do what we can.

In a peripheral county such as mine the wait is years long and therapies come in six-week blocks with a long wait thereafter.

We work in poorly maintained buildings and wait years and years for anything from small works grants to modular to new buildings.

Burnout is high. The phrase transitioning out of teaching has emerged. It’s no longer the vocationary job for life. Our younger colleagues cannot live in cities. So many of our young professionals are contributing to the UAE and Australian economies.

. Our underfunded public service props up so many other underfunded public services. We are overworked, underpaid and a newly minted militancy has formed among our ranks.

Voting wraps up on December 4th. Should we vote No, who will mind the children? – Yours, etc,

NEASA NÍ LIONÁIRD,

Headford,

Killarney,

Co Kerry.