SIXTEEN teachers, suspended from school on full-pay, remained out of the classroom for more than a year, new figures reveal.
At a time when school services are being cut due to budget pressures, a prominent public spending watchdog figure criticised such lengthy suspensions as a "scandalous waste".
The Irish News reported this month that millions of pounds were spent on salaries and pensions of teachers suspended in the last five years. Costs involved in covering precautionary suspensions of staff are increasing annually.
A separate set of figures now show 16 classroom staff were out of work for 13 months or longer. Teachers receive their full pay, and teaching allowances, for the duration of their suspension.
The decision to place a teacher on precautionary suspension, without prejudice, is only taken after careful consideration and where it is deemed absolutely necessary.
Between 2010 and this year, a total of 123 teachers in primary and post-primary schools were suspended from work. Of those, 106 cases have concluded, with 95 teachers reinstated and six dismissed. Four resigned and one retired.
Over that period, the cost of salaries, pension contributions and National Insurance contributions paid to those suspended teachers topped £4.2 million.
The figures, which were published in response to assembly questions by John Dallat of the SDLP, do not take into account any substitute teacher costs that schools incurred having to replace the suspended teachers, meaning the total cost could be almost double.
Mr Dallat, who is deputy chairman of the assembly Public Accounts Committee, said the £4.2m cost could have been otherwise spent on improving standards of education.
Savings of almost £200 million must be made across the education system in 2015/16. Casualties of cuts so far include language classes for primary pupils, a free book scheme for children, and school maintenance work.
Additional information on the length of suspensions over the last five years has now been made public. The Department of Education explained that the period of time varied for each case, "as the nature of precautionary suspensions can be very complex".
Numerous agencies, the department added, could be involved in resolving issues relating to the suspension, such as social services, the police and the Occupational Health Service.
Information was provided about 102 of the 106 cases already dealt with. In the last five years, 62 suspensions lasted three months or less while 24 cases lasted between four and 12 months. There were 16 cases in which the suspension was at least 13 months.
"This response provides some insight into the length of time teachers have been suspended but within the 13-plus suspended for more than a year there is at least two suspended for more than 24 months which in itself is an awful lot of money taking into account substitute teachers," Mr Dallat said.
"I am aware of one teacher who was re-instated only to be re-suspended again within minutes when he refused to apologise for something he always denied and where no evidence was offered that he had ever done anything that merited suspension in the first place.
"In the meantime many of our schools are experiencing severe shortages in resources to provide the most basic of needs that many children are crying out for. I hope to have a meeting with one of the teacher unions to hear their views on how this scandalous waste of scarce resources can be brought to an end and a more civilised model put in place which will protect all parties."
