The assistant general secretary of the ASTI teachers' union has told the High Court he was ordered not to come on to the grounds of St Gerard's private school in Co Wicklow when he called a meeting of teachers to discuss the case of a teacher, Mary Hennessy, who claims she was wrongly deprived of a permanent post there.
Patrick King said no official of the ASTI had ever experienced that. The school principal at the time, Gerald Foley, had told him not to come on to the school premises during school time to talk to staff.
This was an unacceptable denial of the rights of the teachers of St Gerard's to meet him, he said.
He met staff in a local hotel instead. Some went directly to Mr Foley to complain about the treatment of Ms Hennessy. A petition was also sent to the school board in support of her.
In cross-examination of Mr King, Roddy Horan said the veto in relation to Mr King's coming to the school for a union meeting was in relation to the time of 1pm. Mr King said that was definitely not the impression given to him. He agreed he has since gone in to the school to meet members of the board on other matters.
Mr King was giving evidence in the continuing action brought against St Gerard's board of governors by Ms Hennessy, of Quill Road, Kilmacanogue, Co Wicklow. She is claiming various orders and damages after her position was not made permanent in the fee-paying school in 2003 after complaints had allegedly been made about her by parents of pupils in a Leaving Cert class.
Ms Hennessy had been a maths and business organisation teacher at the school from August 2002. She claims that in March 2003 reference was made to a probationary period, and at the end of April 2003 she received a letter saying the school did not intend to offer a contract of continuous employment at the end of this period.
The teacher took seven classes in St Gerard's senior school, including maths to third year and a sixth-year pass maths class.
Yesterday Mr King said giving a new teacher like Ms Hennessy a sixth-year class was putting them in at the deep end.
He said two or three parents complaining out of 200 was a small percentage. In this case, it appeared the complaints regarding Ms Hennessy were accepted as fact.
There was not a teacher in the country who did not have three or four disgruntled parents; that would be normal enough, he said.
Later yesterday former principal Mr Foley said he was taken aback when he received two letters of complaint from parents in relation to Ms Hennessy, as usually difficulties were sorted out between the parents and teacher.
He said it also contradicted his perception of the teacher. The letters included one from a parent who was also a governor.
He had suggested that another maths teacher, used to dealing with people with very high expectations, support Ms Hennessy. The absolute confidence he had in Ms Hennessy was a little eroded after December 2002.
The sixth-year pass maths pupils were having difficulties with homework, and he could not understand why they were not talking to Ms Hennessy about it. There were requests for another teacher, which he refused.
The case has been adjourned to February 6th.