ACCS

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ACCS/Info Bulletin 22/21

1. Job-Sharing Teachers – Temporary Further Alleviation.
2. Temporary Changes to the Job-Sharing Scheme for Special Needs Assistants Employed in Schools for the Remainder of the School Year.
3. COVID-19 Vaccination Appointments During School Hours.
4. Bus Escorts and the Cessation of ‘Rolled-Up Holiday Pay’.
5. Termination of all First Fixed-term Teacher Contracts.
6. Filling Available Teaching Posts/Hours for the 2021/22 School Year.
7. Competency Based Recruitment Manual for the Appointment of a Principal/Deputy Principal.
8. National Workplace Wellbeing Day.
1. Job-Sharing Teachers – Temporary Further Alleviation.

The Department has been made aware that some schools are currently experiencing difficulties in recruiting substitute teachers. As a result, it will allow a school to employ a job-sharing teacher in a substitute capacity, from another school, as an exceptional arrangement until the end of the current school year.

Under the terms of Information Note TTC 005/2020, a job-sharing teacher was limited to carrying out substitute work in her/her own school in the 2020/21 school year in order to minimise movement between schools during the current COVID- 19 pandemic. This restriction is now removed.

Schools should refer to page 15 of the OLCS Quick Reference Guide on how to input the OLCS claim for the job-sharing teacher. This will provide the school with information on how to add the job-sharing teacher to the substitutes list.

2. Temporary Changes to the Job-Sharing Scheme for Special Needs Assistants Employed in Schools for the Remainder of the School Year.

In order to increase the supply of SNAs in schools, a job-sharing SNA may now be employed to work in a substitute capacity in his/her own school during the period s/he is rostered off duty. The job-sharing SNA is, however, not permitted to exceed their maximum number of weekly contracted hours (i.e. their full-time SNA hours) and should be paid the appropriate substitute daily rate of pay.

These arrangements are temporary and will apply for the remainder of the 20/21 school year.

The Department has also advised that any substitute work carried out by job-sharing SNAs in the current school year to date, will be paid by the Department.

3. COVID-19 Vaccination Appointments During School Hours.

The Department has advised that in situations where a teacher or SNA is called to receive their COVID-19 vaccination during school hours, the absence will be treated in the same manner as other medical appointments. 

In this regard, paragraph 1.3 of the Sick Leave Scheme as contained in Circular 0054/2019 for teachers and Circular 0060/2019 for SNAs will apply:

1.3 Sick Leave may be granted to a teacher or SNA who is unable to perform his/her duties

•          because of illness, injury or  

•          when absent for the purpose of obtaining medical related services (e.g. Doctor/Dentist) provided such appointments could not have been arranged outside of regular working hours or working days. 

Similar to the Sick Leave Scheme, the teacher/SNA should provide confirmation of the vaccination appointment. Where a teacher or SNA has side effects following the COVID-19 vaccination, resulting in absence from work, the terms and conditions of the Sick Leave Scheme will apply.

4. Bus Escorts and the Cessation of ‘Rolled-Up Holiday Pay’.

The Department has published Circular Letter 0024/21 on the revised payment mechanism for hourly paid bus escorts. This circular letter directs schools to cease the practice of paying ‘rolled-up holiday pay’ to bus escorts from the commencement of the 2021/22 school year to bring the method of remunerating such staff into line with the European Union Working Time Directive.

Key change:

Heretofore, the hourly rates paid to bus escorts has included an element in respect of annual leave. This practice is known as ‘rolled-up holiday pay’. From the beginning of the next school year, a separate mechanism is being introduced in respect of holiday pay which can be summarised as follows:

·         Where hourly-paid bus escorts currently receive “rolled-up holiday pay”, with effect from the commencement of the 2021/2022 academic year, 8% will be removed from the current hourly rate. This represents the bus escorts statutory annual leave entitlement. The bus escorts will accumulate statutory annual leave to the value of 8% of time worked.

Accumulated Statutory Annual Leave:

Bus escorts will take and be paid their accumulated statutory annual leave entitlement during the closure periods at Christmas, Easter and summer as follows:

  • During the Christmas closure period, bus escorts will take the statutory annual leave which they have accumulated since the commencement of the academic year and will be paid for such leave.

  • During the Easter closure period, bus escorts will take the statutory annual leave which they have accumulated since the end of the Christmas closure period and will be paid for such leave.

  • During the summer closure period, bus escorts will take the statutory annual leave which they have accumulated since the end of the Easter closure period and will be paid for such leave.

Appendix 1 of the circular letter has a useful guide on the level of statutory annual leave accumulated based on the hours worked in a term by a bus escort. A bus escort will accumulate statutory annual leave as detailed in Appendix 1 and will take and be paid for such leave as outlined above.

It is important to note that the overall remuneration of bus escorts is not being changed as a result of this circular letter.

5. Termination of all First Fixed-term Teacher Contracts.

Boards of Management are reminded that all first-year contracts must be terminated at the end of the first year. A template Letter of Termination is available in the HR section of ACCS website www.accs.ie and schools are advised to use this letter when giving notice of termination. (Template Letter of Termination attached to this info bulletin).

6. Filling Available Teaching Posts/Hours for the 2021/22 School Year.

By now schools will have applied to the Department for sanction of offer of CIDs or enhanced CIDs to eligible teachers and schools will also have notified the Department of vacancies for the purpose of redeployment.

Once the redeployment process has been completed (normally at the end of May) and schools have been advised by the Director of Redeployment that they can proceed to fill vacancies, school management must follow the procedure and sequence outlined in Circular Letter 0059/2016 when filling any remaining teaching posts/hours.

Having exhausted the procedure in Circular Letter 59/2016 any remaining permanent or fixed term teaching posts/hours (whether full-time or part-time) can be filled through a formal recruitment process using the standard procedures and criteria for the filling of such posts.

Where a first fixed-term contract is being terminated at the end of the school year in accordance with Circular Letter 0024/2015 and the position is continuing in the following school year, the position must be advertised and a formal recruitment process undertaken for filling the position.

Note: Schools are, however, reminded that they may carry out a recruitment process up to and including the interview stage at this time of year but are not permitted to appoint a teacher to fill a vacancy for the 2021/22 school year until the Department has confirmed that the redeployment process is completed.

7.       Competency based Recruitment Manual for the Appointment of a Principal/Deputy Principal.

The Competency Based Recruitment Manual has been updated and is available on request from ACCS for any school that may have a vacancy this year. It is important that Boards and Selection Committees use the updated documentation when advertising and appointing Principals/Deputy Principals in the months ahead.

Vacancies for Principal and Deputy Principal posts must be advertised on publicjobs.ie. Publicjobs require three days’ notice to publish advertisements and the closing date must be a minimum of two weeks from the date of publication. To advertise on publicjobs schools must complete an External Advert Request Form (copy attached together with Advert Guidelines) and send to externaladverts@publicjobs.ie.

8. National Workplace Wellbeing Day.

This Friday, 30th April 2021 is National Workplace Wellbeing Day and we hope you find ways to celebrate health and wellbeing with your staff.

Is mise, Le mór mheas,

John Irwin, GENERAL SECRETARY.

Addenda

  1. Template Letter of Termination First Fixed Term Contract

  2. External Advert Request Form

  3. External Adverts Guidelines