Primary school teachers have voted in favour of industrial action in a row over a ban on promotions in schools.

Teachers voted by a majority of 97% in favour of action in a ballot held last week.

Schools will be notified in the coming days of a work to rule – it is understood there will not be any closures as a result of the action.

The Irish National Teachers Union (INTO) says it want promoted posts lost over the last eight years to be reinstated, along with an end to the ban on promotion in primary schools.

Teachers are “fed up”, said INTO general secretary, Sheila Nunan.

“Fed up is the mood, angry is the mood, demoralised is the mood.,” she said.

“People are just particularly feeling that they have put in a lot of work during the recessionary years, taken on a lot of responsibility, lost a lot of pay, lost a lot of promoted posts - and would like now to see a commencement of a process of getting those posts back in,” she added.

“This has severely hit the career prospects of unprompted teachers and has increased the work burden on teachers in schools,” an INTO statement said.

Teachers now refuse to see the Department of Education “continue to ramp up requirements and pressures on school” while still “ignoring a ban on promotion that has devastated school management structure,” Ms Nunan said.