Rory McGann
More information
Candidate Profile - IFUT Presidential Election 2026
Vice President of IFUT (2025–present) - MIC Branch Convenor (2025–present) - MIC Branch Chairperson (2024–present) - MIC Branch Secretary (2022–2024) - IFUT member (2012–present)
Colleagues,
Academic work is being reshaped in ways that are more demanding, more pressurised, and—particularly for many early-career and hourly-paid colleagues—less secure. Workload intensification is now structural. Precarious employment remains a defining issue. For many colleagues, these are not abstract concerns—they shape whether people can build a career, sustain their workload, or remain in the sector. What matters now is how we deliver real and lasting improvements in members’ working lives!
That is why IFUT matters—and why this election matters.
I am seeking election as President because I believe this moment calls for leadership that is focused, grounded, and capable of delivering for members.
By way of context, I began my career as a primary teacher and later worked as a Regional Advisor with the Department of Education Since joining MIC in 2009, I have held a range of roles across teaching, research, and academic leadership - hourly-paid Tutor, lecturer, senior lecturer (acting) and multiple Director of Academic Function roles. I’m also a current member of MIC’s Governing Authority. I have been a member of IFUT since 2012 and have served the union as Branch Secretary, Branch Chairperson, and currently as National Vice President, as well as a member of Council and the Executive. I also serve as MIC Convenor.
At Mary Immaculate College, I have supported colleagues across a wide range of individual and collective issues that protect and improve the working lives of our members - negotiating better terms and conditions, advocating for their rights and taking action. For colleagues moving from insecure to more stable contracts, or gaining access to progression and promotion.
These are not abstract gains—they make a real and immediate difference in people’s working lives.
This has included:
- Negotiating collective agreements and improved dispute resolution processes
- Delivering a contract conversion scheme for hourly-paid staff
- Expanding access to sabbaticals and supporting career progression
- Strengthening staff representation in governance
- Growing branch membership and maximising density among permanent academic staff
- Institutional workload recognition for our Branch Convenor and committee members
At national level, my contributions on Council and the Executive has involved informing IFUT’s policy positions on issues such as employment conditions, pensions, sectoral reform, funding, governance, AI & assessment - always with a focus on ensuring that national engagement reflects the realities of academic work across institutions. What I have learned through this work is that we are very good at identifying the challenges we face. But …
The real challenge is ensuring that we follow through in ways that lead to real and lasting improvements in members’ working lives.
My vision for this presidency is to ensure that how we organise, how we work, and what we achieve are clearly aligned with the realities our members face. This involves the expertise and concerns of our members, the processes of our activism and advocacy, the impact of our outcomes, and the realities of our operating environment. In this context, effective union leadership moves beyond reactive negotiation. It must be strategic, imaginative, and collectively grounded.
That requires working closely with colleagues, building trust through consistent engagement, and ensuring that we have the structures in place to support effective action. It also requires a union that is confident in its voice—one that can engage constructively at national level while remaining grounded in the experience of its members. As President, my priorities will be:
- Strengthening career pathways for early-career and precariously employed colleagues
- Supporting fair, transparent promotion processes
- Ensuring a strong and effective staff voice in governance
- Advancing fair and sustainable employment practices across the sector
I was honoured to receive nominations from committee members across eight of our eleven branches. I see that not simply as support, but as a responsibility—to engage, to listen, and to deliver. If elected, I would work closely with branches, Council, and the Executive to support that approach. Our shared experience must lead to shared outcomes - and our collective voice must lead to real and lasting change. We all know the challenges we face - funding, governance, precarity, workloads, promotions, and an ever-increasing neoliberalist approach to higher education. But our strength is not abstract. It lies in the depth of expertise, the diversity of experience, and the shared commitment across this membership.
What matters now is how we deliver real and lasting improvements in members’ working lives, and who we choose to deliver on these commitments.
I would be honoured to have your support, confidence, and ultimately your vote in order to achieve that shared endeavour.
