THE IT Tralee Students Union President has criticised industrial action taken by TUI staff at the college, which he says is “causing extreme anxiety for students”.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the IT Tralee Students’ Union said it was made aware of a TUI grievance, in relation to the Student Complaints Procedure in March of this year and as a consequence, the TUI issued a directive mandating members to not comply with the Institute complaints procedure.

The statement says that on Tuesday, April 12, the TUI took the decision to escalate this industrial action “to include not providing students with feedback in relation to assessments or academic progress and not attending the student/lecturer meetings scheduled to take place after the examination results are released”.

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The Students’ Union said in the statement “that this action is an unfair and invalid action as it does not further the aims of the dispute, however it does have an extremely detrimental effect on the student body. A body who are largely not party to the creation or change of policy or procedure within the Institute.”

Ben Slimm IT Tralee SU President said; “This action is causing and will continue to cause extreme anxiety for the students of IT Tralee. If you are a fourth year student in the middle of a project, or a first year student about to undertake final exams, feedback is a vital part of the learning experience and constitutes a large part of the lecturer’s job. This action was taken by the TUI with no consultation and without regard for the students’ rights as learners.”

The IT Tralee Students’ Union is calling on the TUI to immediately end this action and says it will engage local and national partners such as the Union of Students in Ireland to oppose this action by any means deemed necessary.