The number applying for the post of principal in primary schools has declined by some 75 per cent in the past two decades, the Irish National Teachers' Organisation conference heard yesterday.
The conference was also told that while a regular teaching post would now attract up to 100 applicants, the same school would be fortunate to receive two applications if a vacancy should arise for the post of principal.
Declan Kelleher of the INTO's central executive committee said that "primary principals and in particular teaching principals are among the most exploited group of workers in the entire public services".
He said 16 primary schools failed to attract any suitable applicants for the post of principal last summer.
Moreover, the posts had to be readvertised again and again before, in most cases, just one suitably qualified candidate applied.
The treatment of primary principals is one of the most vexed issues in education. Primary principals have still to receive the same pay and allowances as their counterparts at second level, despite a long-running campaign for parity.
INTO delegates were angered yesterday when Minister for Education Mary Hanafin gave no hint that she was willing to address the long-standing issue.
Mr Kelleher said that for years, the Department of Education had played on the goodwill of primary principals.
"Measure after measure has been introduced into Irish primary schools without any regard to how the principal can manage."
Current principals' allowances were paltry, he said, and there had been no improvement in back-up, such as release time, secretarial or caretaking staff.
In fact, so callous was the disregard of principals by the department, he added, that they must be accused of breaches of health and safety standards.
Mr Kelleher also said that many principals were suffering damage to their health because they were being allocated a workload which could not be undertaken without the required infrastructure.
He said the paltry allowances meant that teachers would no longer put themselves in the firing line for the most difficult job in education while remuneration rates were so low.
"Every primary school now has its own special education section for its special needs pupils yet the presence of special needs assistants [ SNA] and other ancillary personnel working in the school under the direction of the principal isn't counted in the principals' remuneration.
"Take, for example, the principal of St Anne's special school in Roscrea.
"Ten years ago, as principal, he managed eight colleagues and one SNA. Today he manages eight teaching colleagues, 17 SNAs, seven escorts, as well as part-time speech and language, occupational, behavioural and physical therapists.
"In those 10 years, he has gone from a staff of nine to a staff of 37, yet his remuneration rate as principal has remained exactly the same as it was, as it's only the teachers who are counted in calculating the principal's salary. Beat that for logic! Who would want to be a primary principal?"
Máire Ní Chuinneagáin, Galway, pointed to the income differential between pay levels for primary and post-primary principals.
The allowance for a primary teacher in a 20-teacher school was €19,600, compared to €24,900 for second-level principals.
A disappointed Matt Hume from Dublin said the minister had paid tribute to the immense contribution of teachers in building the modern Ireland which we had today.
Ms Hanafin must support those kind words with positive action in support of teachers, he said.
