Teachers ‘don’t feel safe in the classroom’

The Ulster Teachers’ Union (UTU) said a safety strategy is needed to deal with anxiety among staff over the spreading of the coronavirus. Jacquie White, General Secretary of the UTU said: “Teachers are increasingly concerned about the lack of clarity on exactly what they need to do to ensure schools don’t become a breeding ground for this virus. “We understand that the Department of Education is working on a safety strategy and we would urge them to bring this forward as soon as possible to stem the rising tide of anxiety among teachers. “Schools are playing a vital role in ensuring that as many key workers as possible can remain at work but if teachers are afraid to work because they fear their health is being risked or if they fall ill, then that will be counter-productive. “What we don’t want to see is a rise in the number of teachers infected who in turn could infect the children of the key workers, who in turn may pass the virus onto their parents who we need to remain at work as we approach the predicted spike in infections.” Ms White also said called for clarity over testing of staff and the requirement for PPE gear. “We know there are different types of test. Should teachers be tested daily to see if they have the virus or should they be tested if they’ve displayed symptoms to see if they’ve had the virus? “There have been calls for teachers to have full PPE and if this is deemed necessary then we must have it, but if we employ these other measures will we need PPE to the same extent? “We’re also aware that we don’t want to alarm children any more than they are and teachers dressed in full protective equipment might cause them more stress so this would need to be managed too.”