"We have many members with serious underlying health issues."
The ramifications of the entire country of Ireland moving to Level 5 restrictions, as per the
recommendation by NPHET, are still being fully worked out this morning, with
bars and restaurants to go back to take-away services only, but one of the few sectors that will apparently remain unaffected by the heightening of restrictions will be education.
Schools are currently to remain open, according the Level 5 plan, which is something that may or may not sit well with everyone.
Speaking this morning, the General Secretary of the Teachers Union of Ireland Michael Gillespie said the following:
"Our members are extremely worried by current events and their health and safety in the workplace. We have many members with serious underlying health issues and also many members who share a household with people with underlying health issues.
"We require urgent engagement in relation to what increased protections will apply to teachers in an escalation to Level 4 restrictions. We have already sought detailed clarification on the why it would be safe for schools to remain open at Level 5 if the rest of society is effectively locked down. We have a number of justified and important questions in this regard and these must be addressed as a matter of urgency."
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