The Association of Secondary Teachers in Ireland is to recommend that its 18,000 members should reject the new public service pay agreement in a ballot held this afternoon.
The ASTI 180-strong Central Executive Council met today to decide its position on the successor to the Lansdowne Road public sector pay agreement.
The union's 23-strong Standing Committee had already decided to recommend rejection of the agreement - mainly on the grounds that it fails to address the problem of lower pay scales for those recruited since 2012.
At today's meeting, theCentral Executive Council voted to recommend that its 18,000 members should reject the new public service pay agreement.
The decision to recommend a No vote was by a close margin of 63 votes to 59, with one abstention.
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Speaking today, ASTI President Ger Curtin said: "ASTI members have campaigned vigorously against the discriminatory treatment of recently qualified teachers in their pay.
"All ASTI members have taken strike action and lost pay in order to highlight this injustice.
"The proposed Public Service Agreement does not achieve equal pay during its lifetime and this is the main reason why ASTI members are being urged to reject it."
The Irish National Teachers' Organisation has already rejected the new public service pay proposals in a ballot, while the Teachers Union of Ireland is currently voting on them.
Earlier this summer, the ASTI became the last public service union to accept the first Lansdowne Road Agreement - which was negotiated in 2015.
Its two-year campaign of opposition included industrial action which closed schools for several days last autumn.
Over that period, its 18,000 members lost out financially compared to other unions who accepted it, as ASTI teachers' increments and certain other payments cut or frozen during the economic crisis were not restored.
Those payments have now been restored - but only from the date of acceptance three months ago.
It has been estimated that restoring equal pay for teachers alone would cost €70m, with a bill of €200m to reinstate it across the public sector.
It is viewed as unlikely that the Government could or would concede this, particularly in light of the spending pressures to address the housing emergency.
