Local teachers have voiced their disappointment and frustration at Education Minister Peter Weir’s plan to introduce a scheme to replace older teaching staff with newly-qualified teachers.

Only teachers who have graduated since 2012 will be eligible to apply for the permanent posts, leaving many experienced teachers stuck in temporary positions.

“You put your life on hold because you are always waiting in the hope of securing a permanent job,” said Dervla Higgins, a primary school teacher from Belcoo.

“This scheme is resigning me to a future of uncertainty,” added Eimear O’Reilly, a primary school teacher from Lisnaskea.
“I had no job security or summer pay before I gave up and moved to Russia.

Give everyone the same chance to apply for jobs and don’t discriminate based on age,” stated Kieran Haren, a secondary school teacher from Cooneen who now lives and teaches in Moscow.

“I have nine years experience with eight different subjects and have taught special education needs and academic students; how is it possible for a teacher to walk out of uni and get a job with none of these vital experiences? It’s all a money cutting exercise, its also discriminatory,” commented Dylan Early from Strabane.

The Investing in the Teaching Workforce Scheme was announced in 2015 but was delayed due to lack of agreement over the criteria. Initially, more than £33 million was to be allocated by the Executive but the Minister has now said that £8 million is being made available in 2016-2017 for the scheme to operate on a pilot basis. If it is successful, the scheme may continue in 2017-2018.

“This is very good news for those recently-graduated teachers who are unable to find permanent teaching positions,” Education Minister Peter Weir stated. 
“This scheme will help to refresh the teaching workforce and share employment opportunities fairly between the generations. Whilst I realise that this will be disappointing for graduates who are outside the criteria, without this scheme these employment opportunities would not exist.”
He added: “Those not eligible to apply for the employment opportunities created as a result of this scheme will be eligible to apply for the teaching job opportunities advertised each year; of which there have been over 750 meaningful job opportunities in each of the recent years.”

This week, Dervla Higgins will write to Minister Weir, just as she wrote to the previous Education Minister John O’Dowd. 
“I will again suggest that he adopt a panel system for job applicants similar to the Republic of Ireland, it seems much fairer. This scheme is very unfair,” said Miss Higgins, who has been teaching in temporary posts for the past seven years.
She believes that “the scheme is a good idea for older teachers who want to get out and for younger teachers who want to gain experience” but she is disappointed to find herself “in that bracket in between who don’t fit that criteria; it’s very frustrating.”
“I’ve been very fortunate to have had seven full years in lovely schools but I’ve never made it to four years in one school – you can be made permanent after four years,” she continued. 
“I’ve missed out. When you get a placement in a school you give everything in the hope that you will be made permanent; it’s exhausting because you’re always starting afresh each September. 
“It affects things like mortgage applications and maternity leave because you don’t have a permanent job. 
“I’m currently waiting to hear back from two jobs and although I am not hopeful, I will spend a week preparing for each interview because I need to have a job in place for September.”

Reflecting on her future, Eimear O’Reilly, who has a young family, said: “I am disappointed. The Education Minister said he knows that people will be disappointed but I think that’s a bit of an understatement.
“When you graduated you couldn’t get a job without experience but now I feel that I am being penalised because of my experience.
“Overall, I feel that the scheme is a good idea. I have no qualms about the over fifty-fives getting a good retirement deal. Teaching is not the easiest job. These people have put in around 30 years of hard work and they’re well deserving of a good retirement package. Likewise, it’s good for new graduates to be offered such an opportunity. However, I don’t see why anyone who graduated more than four years ago should be penalised. Open the jobs to everyone and let the best candidate get it. 
“I’m sure parents would want their children to be taught by the most experienced candidate. It takes a good few years after graduating to settle in and find your style of teaching. I don’t see why the date was put on it.”

A male secondary school teacher from Fermanagh who graduated in 2013 and will therefore benefit from the scheme commented: “There are a lot of young teachers who have had to go to England or the Middle East to get work so it may benefit them also. However, I realise that for people who have graduated before 2012 it is an unfair system.”

UUP MLA and former teacher Rosemary Barton believes that the scheme discriminates against experienced teachers who graduated prior to 2012. 
She told The Impartial Reporter that these teachers “deserve better than this.”

Mrs. Barton said that school amalgamations, closures, redundancies and changes to the pension scheme, have resulted in the teaching profession becoming “a very static workforce.” The MLA who sits on Stormont’s Education Committee called on the Education Minister to “look at other creative ways of finding employment for these teachers, such as reintroducing support staff in numeracy and literacy.”