At the largest school in the country, half of its students have been unable to attend this week or last as their school attempts to manage the impact of the school secretaries and caretakers strike.
Third, fourth and fifth year students at Gorey Community School have been forced to stay at home this week.
Either those year groups or others will be obliged to stay at home next week if the strike continues.
The school has more than 1,600 students.
Principal Michael Finn told RTÉ News that he had no choice but to take this course of action.
The school's three caretakers are all on strike and his central concern is the accumulation of waste.
"I’m worried about vermin, and I’m worried about flies," he said.
The school has already closed its canteen and cancelled its hot school meals, asking students to bring packed lunches and take their waste home with them.
This has had a knock-on effect on the company that provides hot school meals, with a threat now that staff there will have to be laid off temporarily, Mr Finn said.
"It's innocent children. Our kids are a week behind already", one parent of two teenagers unable to attend the school told RTÉ News.
Directing her anger at Government she said: "I am not blaming the principal, or the caretakers or secretaries. They are only looking for what everyone else has".
The school’s three caretakers are in charge of putting the bins out, fixing toilets, including blocked toilets, addressing electrical faults and other maintenance jobs that arise on a frequent basis in a school of this size.
"I am trying to keep the school open for as long as possible," Mr Finn said.
"But if I have every year group in at the same time that places too much strain on toilets etc."
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Teaching staff at the school, as well as its SNAs have all been instructed by their unions not to carry out work that is usually done by the school caretaker or secretary.
This means that they cannot deal with school refuse.
School principals are mindful of the potential long-term need to maintain staff relations into the future.
"When all this is over, we still all need to work with each other in a harmonious environment," Mr Finn said.
The school is prioritising sixth year students who are coming in every day, and then first years who are coming in "most days".
It is considering whether it will attempt to bring Transition Year students back as well next week.
Mr Finn says the school is trying to work out a system "that is fair", but it is not yet clear which year groups beyond sixth and first years will be able to attend next week.
Teachers are giving children work to do at home via Microsoft Teams.
"Parents are concerned. Some are angry and I can understand their anger," he said.
Mr Finn said he is "shocked" that the strike is still going on.
"I cannot believe it.
"I genuinely thought that by Monday [of this week] there would be a resolution or at least talks.
"I am shocked that there seems to be no end in sight," he said.
A parent of two children at the school, both of whom are stuck at home, among them a Junior Cycle students, told RTÉ News: "This has been a terrible start to the school year. This doesn’t seem to be ending any time soon, and is unacceptable for students facing an exam year."
