Private school secretary loses appeal against wage cut under austerity legislation

A secretary at a private school in Dublin has lost a High Court appeal against a decision that her wages were lawfully cut as part of austerity legislation for public servants. Damhnait Nic Bhradaigh, who has worked at Mount Anville Secondary School since 1991, had her wages cut from January 2011.

In August 2014, the Employment Appeals Tribunal ruled the cut was lawful and Ms Nic Bhradaigh appealed the case to the High Court. She argued her salary was paid wholly by the school and she only had a privately funded pension. She said this meant she was not a public servant.

Ms Justice Marie Baker yesterday ruled the definition of a public servant within the legislation was a person employed by or who holds any office in a public service body. She said a public service body was defined as one that had a public service pension scheme and that was wholly or partly funded, directly or indirectly from the exchequer.

After evidence that Mount Anville received €19 million from the exchequer in the past eight years, the judge said the school met the test.