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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| School helpers strike escalates | School helpers strike escalates |
| (about 6 hours later) | |
| Industrial action by classroom assistants over job re-grading has escalated into an indefinite strike. | |
| The strike, by 3,000 members of the public service union NIPSA, has closed 27 of Northern Ireland's 45 special schools. | |
| Education Minister Caitriona Ruane has appealed to the strikers to end their action. | |
| The minister said the burden of the strike fell on those who most needed help. | |
| Three of the unions involved in the dispute are consulting their members over the deal. There are no more negotiating talks planned. | Three of the unions involved in the dispute are consulting their members over the deal. There are no more negotiating talks planned. |
| The unions have been complaining about a change in the length of the working week on which their salary would be based, about the removal of an allowance for special needs and the ending of recognition for higher qualifications. | The unions have been complaining about a change in the length of the working week on which their salary would be based, about the removal of an allowance for special needs and the ending of recognition for higher qualifications. |
| Compensate | Compensate |
| Last week's three-day strike by classroom assistants belonging to the public sector of NIPSA badly affected special schools and meant parents had to take time off work to care for their special needs children. | Last week's three-day strike by classroom assistants belonging to the public sector of NIPSA badly affected special schools and meant parents had to take time off work to care for their special needs children. |
| The employers have offered an extra £15m as a one-off payment to compensate for some of the changes. | The employers have offered an extra £15m as a one-off payment to compensate for some of the changes. |
| They said that could mean £2,500 for each assistant. | They said that could mean £2,500 for each assistant. |
| However, Nipsa insists that the offer does not go far enough. | However, Nipsa insists that the offer does not go far enough. |
| The main sticking point is the change in the number of hours that assistants have to work to get a full salary. | The main sticking point is the change in the number of hours that assistants have to work to get a full salary. |