28 March 2025
SDLP Education Spokesperson Cara Hunter MLA has said that the concerns of teachers must be listened to by the Education Minister, employers and Executive.
She was speaking after teaching unions rejected a 5.5% pay offer.
East Derry MLA Ms Hunter said:
“The current impasse between the Education Minister, employers and teaching unions reflects the total and utter failure of successive Ministers to listen to the concerns of teachers and agree a deal that delivers improved working conditions alongside a fair pay offer. Expanding classroom sizes, reduced funding and aging resources heap more pressure on teachers with each passing year. Coupled with a lack of opportunities for career progression and development, it’s understandable that many are feeling let down or burnt out.
“The Minister still has time to engage positively with teaching unions and reach a deal that averts strike action. The last thing any of us want to see is disruption to children’s education, but that won’t be achieved by the current stalemate. There remains a stark contradiction between the Minister’s rhetoric and his actions, lauding the role that teachers play in delivering educational excellence, while failing to offer an agreement they find acceptable.
“We need to see an approach that addresses these issues in the long-term and stops teachers feeling they have no other option but to move elsewhere where they have the potential to earn considerably more or even deciding to leave the profession altogether. This also sends the wrong message to the next generation of potential teachers who may think twice about taking up the profession.
"The SDLP has always stood firmly behind our teachers and will do everything we can to see their concerns addressed and an agreement reached so that they can continue their vital work educating our young people.”