On Wednesday, November 6, College confirmed that the recruitment process will soon begin in the hope of increasing the number of staff in Oifig na Gaeilge. Currently, there is only one employee working in Oifig na Gaeilge.
In comparison, UCD’s Oifig na Gaeilge is comprised of four full-time employees.
In an email sent to TCDSU/AMLCT president Jenny Maguire, the Office of the Provost detailed that a review of the Secretary’s Office had been carried out over the summer, after which a number of recommendations were made.
As per the email, increasing staff numbers in the Oifig na Gaeilge is “one action arising from this”.
This announcement comes after months of heavy campaigning by AMLCT/TCDSU, in particular Oifigeach na Gaeilge Pádraig Mac Brádaigh, regarding the lack of Gaeilge present in College.
On Friday, November 1, AMLCT/TCDSU published an open letter to Provost Linda Doyle, calling for commitment to fulfilling lawful obligations associated with Gaeilge.
Alongside this, a banner was hung on the campanile with “Cá bhfuil an Ghaeilge?” written on it.
As per the Official Languages Acts 2003 and 2021, College has a lawful duty to ensure all signage on campus is bilingual, that any electronic correspondence received in Irish be answered in Irish, that 20% of College’s public advertisement be in Irish, and that 20% of Trinity’s staff have an upper intermediate level of Irish by 2030.
AMLCT/TCDSU have called for Trinity to triple the funding of Oifig na Gaeilge which includes employing at least two more staff members in the office, to create an Irish Language Action Plan committing to striving for a fully bilingual university, to complete a full audit on signage, stationary and audio recordings to ensure compliance with the language laws, and the sole use of Trinity’s bilingual logo where the Irish text is equal in size to the English.
Speaking on the issue, Mac Brádaigh expressed that he is happy to see College working with the students’ union to address the issues raised, and that this announcement is “a step forward”.
However, Mac Brádaigh emphasises that “this is only the start.”
Referencing the legislation regarding 20% of staff members having an intermediate level of fluency in Gaeilge, Mac Brádaigh said that this cannot happen without an action plan from College, and that the union will continue to pressure College in the coming months.
This move will bring the number of staff working in Oifig na Gaeilge to two.
