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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Talks hopes as class strike looms | Talks hopes as class strike looms |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Education Minister Caitriona Ruane has called for talks to avert a one-day strike by thousands of classroom assistants on Wednesday. | |
| Unions and employers held emergency talks on Monday evening but these broke down after 90 minutes, with unions saying there was no progress. | |
| The dispute stretches back over 12 years and centres on classroom assistants' grading and salaries. | |
| Ms Ruane has urged both sides to try to resolve the dispute. | |
| Speaking on Good Morning Ulster, the minister said: "We do need to reverse the strike. What the board and unions need to do is to go into a room and talk until this is resolved." | |
| Janette Murdock, a classroom assistant from Dundonald, said: "It is not just talks, it would take deeds to stop us going out." | |
| 'Last resort' | |
| The unions said they were willing to talk - and that strike action would be a last resort. | |
| Patricia McKeown, from Unison, which represents 2,500 classroom assistants, said it was possible that the employers would come back with a reasonable offer. | Patricia McKeown, from Unison, which represents 2,500 classroom assistants, said it was possible that the employers would come back with a reasonable offer. |
| "I do seriously think we may find ourselves knocking the door of the minister for education in order to have this finally resolved," she said. | "I do seriously think we may find ourselves knocking the door of the minister for education in order to have this finally resolved," she said. |
| If the strike goes ahead, members of one of the unions involved will not work on Wednesday. | If the strike goes ahead, members of one of the unions involved will not work on Wednesday. |
| Some schools may close early and other schools say parents of pupils who need assistance could keep their children at home. | Some schools may close early and other schools say parents of pupils who need assistance could keep their children at home. |
| Another three-day strike is planned for October. | Another three-day strike is planned for October. |