Budget 2026 must address causes of recruitment and retention crisis – TUI
Teacher retention now as big a challenge as teacher recruitment
Ahead of Budget 2026, the Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) has issued a briefing document to all TDs outlining the hugely damaging effects of the recruitment and retention crisis on the service to students in second level schools and on the teaching profession in general.
Click here to download the document.
The Union is calling for targeted budgetary investment to tackle the crisis, which it says the Government seems intent to let continue until student numbers fall. A survey carried out among second level school principals in the last academic year found that 75% of schools advertised positions in the previous six months for which no teacher applied.
The TUI has criticised the Government’s ‘irresponsible inaction’ in only putting forward what it has described as ‘sticking plaster’ measures to tackle the crisis.
Speaking today, TUI President Anthony Quinn said:
‘As a result of the Government’s irresponsible inaction, students in too many schools around the country today have less access to the full range of subjects which should be available to them.’
‘Worryingly, is becoming increasingly obvious that teacher retention is becoming as acute a problem as teacher recruitment, with many leaving the profession due to low-hour contracts and ever-increasing workload, particularly that of a bureaucratic nature.’
‘Trying to ‘ride out’ a crisis until demographics change and student numbers fall is unacceptable education policy for any country, let alone one of our resources.’
'Quite clearly, there is continuing underinvestment in education in Ireland. The latest OECD Education At A Glance report, which issued just last week, shows that of the countries for which figures are provided, none spend a lower proportion of gross domestic product (GDP) on education than Ireland’s. At second level, Ireland’s spend is once again at the foot of the table, trailing unacceptably behind the OECD average.’
‘The scarcity of affordable housing is a clear factor in the crisis, but this applies to all of society and must be tackled nationally in a coherent manner. However, there are some effective, specific measures that would largely resolve the recruitment and retention crisis in schools, massively improving the educational experience for the current generation of students.’
‘Ahead of Budget 2026, we are urging our elected representatives to prioritise these critical issues.’
The TUI has consistently set out some key solutions to the crisis:
- Schools must be provided with greater teaching allocations to allow more full-time, permanent jobs from initial appointment. A TUI survey this year showed that that only 26% of respondents appointed since 2015 received a contract of full hours upon commencement, with just 11% offered a permanent position on appointment.
- Career structures must be enhanced to keep the job attractive and to boost retention. Posts of responsibility, which ensure the smooth running of schools and provide pastoral support for students, were cut during the last recession and have never been properly restored. Their loss has been keenly felt in school communities, increasing the workload of principals and deputy principals and reducing supports for students while eliminating promotional opportunities for teachers.
- Too many are being priced out of the teaching profession, which is affecting the diversity of the profession. Halving the duration of the two-year Professional Master of Education (PME) required to become a second level teacher would make the profession immediately and significantly more accessible to all in our society. It is no longer viable that second-level teachers should have to complete a four-year degree followed by a two-year PME, being subsidised by family if they’re fortunate enough to have this support or else being saddled with significant debt before they even apply for an initial teaching job that is unlikely to be on a permanent or full-time basis.
- Currently, second-level teachers returning from positions in private schools outside the EU are placed on the first point of the teachers’ salary scale here despite the significant and demonstrable experience attained in teaching diverse curricula abroad. This affects the overwhelming majority of those who may wish to return to Ireland from countries such as Dubai. In many cases, they will simply choose to continue to teach outside Ireland or, if they do return, work in other employments where their transferrable skills are better appreciated. Ultimately, it is students who will lose out.
- The reinstatement of allowances payable for Special Educational Needs (SEN) qualification, teaching through Irish and Island allowances (all abolished in 2012) would also help in the recruitment and retention of teachers in these areas
- Finally, the ever-increasing workload, particularly that of a bureaucratic nature, that continues to be a demoralising factor in the profession and sees many leave for other employments must be tackled. Increasingly, teachers are expected to do more and more with less and less.