Teachers at the final day of the ASTI conference in Killarney have called for a change to how women with pregnancy-related sick leave are treated.
Since the introduction of changes in September 2014, all women working in the public service have been subject to new rules which mean that if they develop a pregnancy-related illness this eats into their sick leave entitlements.
Mairead Wilson, a teacher from south Dublin, said that she is a high-risk mother who has been pregnant three times. She has suffered two miscarriages and her son was born 12 weeks early.
“If I’m lucky enough to get pregnant again chances are I will be put on bed rest, but I am worried about sick leave which is putting more pressure on me. I’d like to have at least one more child, but the lack of support in the system worries me.”
She said she would probably require time off for hospital appointments and pregnancy-related illness, and if she miscarries again she will face financial penalties because she wants to give her son a sibling.
“I really don’t want to speak about this. People don’t want to stand up and say that my body failed me, and I didn’t speak about it until I had my son. There are so many people going through this.”
Another delegate, Ciara Kinsella, said women should be not be paid at half-pay if out on pregnancy-related illness.
Delegates also heard that gay and lesbian teachers will still live in fear even if legislation which allows schools to hire and fire based on sexual orientation is repealed.
Rosabelle Crampton of the union's equal opportunities committee said that the move by Minister for Equality Aodhan Ó Riordain to "amend section 37.1 of the 1998 Employment Equality Act is not enough, and we continue to seek its repeal".
Neil Curran, a teacher at St Columba's in Stranorlar, Co Donegal, said: "If a teacher came to me and asked if they should come out, and if a promotional post is coming up, I would probably advise not to do so if they want that job. Maybe that's wrong, but that's the reality for LGBT teachers in our schools. If I was a gay teacher in Donegal I wouldn't come out."
Mr Curran added that a number of priests had urged a No vote in the upcoming same-sex marriage referendum and expressed concern that many of them are the chairman of the school’s board of management and will have an influence on what young people are told in schools.
Around 20 delegates attended a talk by Sandra Irwin-Gowran of the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network on supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students in schools. Ms Irwin-Gowran said that, based on current information, around one or two students in every second-level classroom may be LGBT.
