Taighde Éireann – Research Ireland (RI) is the Government of Ireland’s research funding body, with its Postgraduate Scholarship Programme funding around 30% of all PhDs in the country. It has been announced internally – to research managers, admin staff and principal investigators – that this funding is ending, along with the Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme.
The reported termination of the Postgraduate and Postdoctoral Fellowship Programmes are likely to have a significant effect on working conditions and research career progression. This move is particularly expected to have dire consequences for PhD candidates in Ireland.
The end of this scheme has the potential to reduce PhD wages in the long term. After extensive lobbying by the Postgraduate Workers’ Organisation (PWO) and Aontas na Mac Leinn in Eireann (AMLÉ), in 2023 the government conducted a review recommending RI funded PhDs be raised to €25,000. After this, other universities and HEIs slowly started raising stipends to come into line with this, under pressure from the PWO and local Student’s Unions. Despite only funding approximately 30% of PhD candidates, RI stipends have been the highest and created a benchmark for other funding to come into line with. By ending the Postgraduate Scholarship Programme, we will likely see the end to this benchmark in PhD stipends.
As RI funding was awarded to PhDs, they had more independence from their supervisors. The end of this funding stream will mean worse working conditions. Because PhDs are considered students, we have no workers rights or protections. The PWO has repeatedly found that PhDs who are on their supervisor’s funding are more precarious and are more likely to be bullied by their supervisor during the PhD. This is partially because they cannot change supervisor in the case of conflict. Conflicts between PhD and supervisor are managed not by an independent body, but by a Thesis Committee which is composed of colleagues of the supervisor, rather than an impartial body. By instead giving block grants to HEIs and supervisors to hire PhD researchers, we expect they will be more prone to exploitation.
There will likely be an impact on the type of research that will be funded, with less critical and independent research being funded. Research that is less commercially viable or critical of institutions, or academic areas that have been less valued by universities will potentially see a reduction in PhD and Postdoctoral researchers funded.
We find it worrying that relevant bodies representing researchers were not consulted, like trade unions e.g. IFUT, the groups representing PhDs like PWO or student unions like AMLÉ. These stakeholders should have input on both the decision to terminate funding programmes as well as what replaces them. The funding conditions put upon the projects supported by the “block grants” given out to HEIs will be critical to reduce the negative impacts described above.
For example, the implementation of workers rights would address the vast majority of the issues created. It is has been the position of IFUT, PWO and AMLÉ that provision of worker status for PhDs is the most justifiable and equitable framework for PhDs. These concerns were noted in a number of motions passed at Comhdháil AMLÉ, the supreme decision making body of the national students union, demanding Research Ireland funding model to be fit for purpose and not lead to worse working conditions for researchers. It additionally adopted positions on establishing a research career framework for Ireland and setting a minimum PhD salary in line with Eurodoc recommendations.
AMLÉ, the PWO and IFUT are important stakeholders in the research ecosystem in Ireland due to the researchers we represent, and it is concerning that this change was made with little to no consultation of us or our members. We thereby call on Research Ireland to:
- Immediately release a statement offering clarity to the researcher community on this decision, the steps that led to it and an explanation for the lack of consultation with representative organisations
- Involve researchers at all stages of the research career framework in the implementation of a new funding model for doctoral and postdoctoral researchers that protects the right to independent research and researcher autonomy.
- Work with AMLÉ, PWO and IFUT, DFHERIS and other funding agencies to develop an employment framework for PhD researchers to ensure that these researchers have career stability and guaranteed minimum salaries and employment rights.
Gaeilge
Is é Taighde Éireann (RI) comhlacht maoinithe taighde Rialtas na hÉireann, agus maoiníonn a Chlár Scoláireachtaí Iarchéime thart ar 30% de na PhDs go léir sa tír. Tá sé fógartha go hinmheánach – do bhainisteoirí taighde, do bhaill foirne riaracháin agus do phríomhthaighdeoirí – go gcuirfear deireadh leis an maoiniú seo, mar aon leis an gClár Comhaltachtaí Iardhochtúireachta,
Is dócha go mbeidh tionchar suntasach ag foirceannadh tuairiscithe na gClár Comhaltachta Iarchéime agus Iardhochtúireachta ar choinníollacha oibre agus ar dhul chun cinn i ngairmeacha taighde.
Go háirithe, táthar ag súil go mbeidh iarmhairtí uafásacha ag an mbeart seo d’iarrthóirí PhD in Éirinn.
Tá sé indéanta go laghdófar pá PhD san fhadtéarma. Tar éis brústocaireachta fairsing ag Postgraduate Worker’s Organisation (PWO) agus Aontas na Mac Léinn in Éirinn (AMLÉ), rinne an rialtas athbhreithniú in 2023 ag moladh go n-ardófaí PhDanna atá maoinithe ag RI go €25,000. Ina dhiaidh sin, thosaigh ollscoileanna agus Institiúidí Ardoideachais eile ag ardú stipinní de réir a chéile chun teacht i gcomhréir leis seo, faoi bhrú ón PWO agus ó hAontais Mhic Léinn áitiúla. Cé nach bhfuil ach thart ar 30% d’iarrthóirí PhD á maoiniú acu, is iad na stipinní RI is airde agus chruthaigh siad tagarmharc le go mbeadh maoiniú eile ag teacht leis. Trí dheireadh a chur leis an gClár Scoláireachta Iarchéime, is dócha go bhfeicfimid deireadh leis an tagarmharc seo i stipinní PhD.
Ós rud é gur bronnadh maoiniú RI ar ar iarrthóirí PhD, bhí níos mó neamhspleáchais acu óna maoirseoirí. Ciallaíonn deireadh an tsrutha maoinithe seo dálaí oibre níos measa. Ós rud é go meastar gur mic léinn iad PhDanna, níl aon chearta oibrithe ná cosaintí againn. Tá sé faighte amach ag an PWO arís agus arís eile go bhfuil PhDanna atá ar mhaoiniú a maoirseora níos neamhchinnte agus go bhfuil níos mó seans ann go ndéanfaidh a maoirseoir bulaíocht orthu le linn an PhD. Tá sé seo amhlaidh go páirteach toisc nach féidir leo maoirseoir a athrú i gcás coinbhleachta. Ní comhlacht neamhspleách a bhainistíonn coimhlintí idir PhD agus maoirseoir, ach Coiste Tráchtas atá comhdhéanta de chomhghleacaithe an mhaoirseora, seachas comhlacht neamhchlaonta. Trí dheontais bhloc a thabhairt d’Institiúidí Ardoideachais agus do mhaoirseoirí chun taighdeoirí PhD a fhostú, táimid ag súil go mbeidh siad níos so-ghabhálaí i leith saothraithe.
Is dócha go mbeidh tionchar ar an gcineál taighde a mhaoineofar, agus níos lú taighde criticiúil agus neamhspleách á mhaoiniú. D’fhéadfadh laghdú teacht ar líon na dtaighdeoirí PhD agus Iardhochtúireachta a fhaigheann maoiniú i gcás taighde nach bhfuil chomh hinmharthana ó thaobh tráchtála de nó atá criticiúil i leith institiúidí, nó réimsí acadúla nár thug ollscoileanna an oiread céanna luacha dóibh.
Is ábhar imní dúinn nár cuireadh comhairliúchán le comhlachtaí ábhartha a dhéanann ionadaíocht ar thaighdeoirí, amhail ceardchumainn e.g. IFUT, na grúpaí a dhéanann ionadaíocht ar PhDanna cosúil le PWO nó aontais mac léinn cosúil le AMLÉ. Ba cheart go mbeadh ionchur ag na geallsealbhóirí seo maidir leis an gcinneadh cláir mhaoinithe a fhoirceannadh chomh maith leis an méid a chuirfear ina n-áit. Beidh na coinníollacha maoinithe a chuirtear ar na tionscadail a fhaigheann tacaíocht ó na “deontais bhloc” a thugtar do na hinstitiúidí ardoideachais ríthábhachtach chun na tionchair dhiúltacha a thuairiscítear thuas a laghdú.
Mar shampla, dhéanfadh cur i bhfeidhm chearta oibrithe aghaidh ar fhormhór mór na saincheisteanna a cruthaíodh. Is é seasamh IFUT, PWO agus AMLÉ gurb é stádas oibrí a sholáthar do PhDanna an creat is inghlactha agus is cothroime do PhDanna. Tugadh faoi deara na hábhair imní seo i roinnt rúin a ritheadh ag Comhdháil AMLÉ, an comhlacht cinnteoireachta uachtarach de chuid aontas náisiúnta na mac léinn, ag éileamh go mbeadh samhail mhaoinithe Taighde Éireann oiriúnach don chuspóir agus nach mbeadh sé ina chúis le dálaí oibre níos measa do thaighdeoirí. Ina theannta sin, ghlac sé seasaimh maidir le creat gairme taighde a bhunú d’Éirinn agus tuarastal íosta PhD a shocrú i gcomhréir le moltaí Eurodoc.
Is geallsealbhóirí tábhachtacha iad AMLÉ, an PWO agus IFUT san éiceachóras taighde in Éirinn mar gheall ar na taighdeoirí a ndéanaimid ionadaíocht orthu, agus is ábhar imní é gur rinneadh an t-athrú seo gan mórán comhairliúcháin linn féin ná lenár mbaill. Dá bhrí sin, iarraimid ar Thaighde Éireann:
- Ráiteas a scaoileadh láithreach a thabharfaidh soiléireacht don phobal taighde maidir leis an gcinneadh seo, na céimeanna as a dtiocfaidh sé agus míniú ar an easpa comhairliúcháin le heagraíochtaí ionadaíocha.
- Taighdeoirí a bheith rannpháirteach ag gach céim den chreat gairme taighde i gcur chun feidhme samhail nua maoinithe do thaighdeoirí dochtúireachta agus iardhochtúireachta lena gcosnaítear an ceart chun taighde neamhspleách agus neamhspleáchas na dtaighdeoirí.
- Oibriú le AMLÉ, PWO agus IFUT, DFHERIS agus gníomhaireachtaí maoinithe eile chun creat fostaíochta a fhorbairt do thaighdeoirí PhD chun a chinntiú go mbíonn cobhsaíocht ghairme ag na taighdeoirí seo agus go ráthaítear íosthuarastail agus cearta fostaíochta orthu.