Sub teachers cost €15 million, but sick leave down now

UP to €15 million was spent by the Department of Education towards the costs of employing substitute teachers for primary schools in Galway to cover sick leave during the past four complete academic years.

Information obtained by The Tuam Herald under the Freedom of Information Act shows that Galway primary teachers took a combined 77,482 sick days from 2016-2017 to 2019-2020. In the 2016-2017 school year, the 2,322 primary teachers, working in the 226 Galway primary schools at the time, were off sick for a total of 19,182 days.

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