While offspring are a blessing, they can seem a very mixed one at times. When they are not testing their boundaries and exploring just how far a parent’s tolerance can be pushed, they are examining just how deep their parent’s wallets are.
Parents have had to be especially forbearing in recent months after the professionals teaching their children embarked on a series of strikes aimed at improving their pay and conditions.
Even the most hard-hearted of mums and dads would have some sympathy for teachers: just looking after one child is a tough enough battle. But stick 30 or so of them in a small room, make them listen to something which they most likely are not at all interested in, and then add in a liberal seasoning of raging hormones, and it is a job for the truly dedicated.
Parents appreciate the proficiency of teachers and are grateful for both their classroom professionalism and the pastoral care they provide pupils, often in their own personal time.
It is quite likely that there was widespread sympathy and support for teachers when they began taking industrial action, especially as it was explained that one of the primary motives for doing so was to ensure that pupils got a better education.
This was despite the mounting fears of both children and parents that the disruption to the education system wreaked by the global pandemic might affect the quality of the education they have received, despite the heroic efforts of teachers and principals to make Covid-19 as minimal a distraction as possible.
But even the most supportive parents have their limits and the Post Primary Teachers Association may well have reached them.
Last week primary school teachers settled their contract dispute with the government but the PPTA, the union representing secondary teachers, recommended that its members reject an almost identical offer.
Worse so far as many parents are concerned, union members also voted to continue with industrial action which many times this year has forced families to reorganise their schedules to accommodate a child being forced to not attend school through no fault of their own.
The Ministry of Education had offered secondary teachers three pay rises over the next two years, as well as a one-off payment of $4500. Time out of the classroom to concentrate on other duties would have increased, as would have mileage allowances.
The cumulative effect of those pay rises would have resulted in novice teachers earning about $58,000 per year and teachers in the top pay brackets being paid about $100,000.
Few would begrudge teachers being paid well, and being paid what they are worth.
But union claims that the offer was not good enough have rubbed many parents up the wrong way.
They are considering their own pay packet and the wage rise prospects they themselves are facing and wonder if the PPTA is not pushing its luck.
Yes the cost of living is high, but the proposed pay rises are claimed to be ahead of the rate of inflation and to many would seem generous.
Parents look at the fact that the PPTA’s primary teaching colleagues have accepted them and are, justifiably, wondering why secondary teachers have not followed suit.
The union argues that industrial action is the best way to get its members’ message across, but for parents it is increasingly difficult not to feel that teachers are playing games with their children's education.
For everyone’s benefit — children, parents and teachers — this is a dispute which needs to be settled as soon as possible.
