Sir, - Thank you for publishing Mr Tom Tierney's letter on the plight of secondary teachers (December 18th.) As a former teacher who left a pitiful set of career prospects for a "proper" job I can confirm what he says: in four years teaching, my income for teaching never exceeded £9,000, let alone £10,000. That does not take into account the sheer strain of working in more than one school in order to make ends meet.
Teachers are leaving the profession in droves as better career prospects can be found in other areas, despite the fact that at application and interview stage they are heavily discriminated against by recruiters who believe the "lazy civil servant" myth. (A recruitment consultant who eventually successfully placed me warned me to play down my teaching background as it would disadvantage me in the workplace. Sadly, this worked.)
Thanks for printing some of the truths about the profession in your fine paper. - Yours, etc.,
Laura Farrell, Rathmines, Dublin 6.