AIBU to think the teacher sickie story is not newsworthy?

If there was a reasonable policy this would never have happened….Teachers at the very least should be able to book off unpaid leave outside of exam season and school employ supply.

But he hadn't had symptoms, let alone diagnosis, until last year and the incident was in 2023. It took far too long to adjudicate on the sickie and passport issue but the MND is irellevant.

Edit for spelling

I am just saying that someone is entitled to make their own decisions.

Good for your school for allowing time off.

I do know quite a few teachers and some of them think that they are the only profession who can’t take time off when they want it or who work hours over their paid time.
I was at a weekday wedding a few years ago and quite a few of the Bride’s aunts, uncles and cousins couldn’t get time off work. They were not teachers.

Yup. I have a disabled family member who needed a new piece of mobility equipment which you need to be trained by occupational health to use safely. We waited 3 years to get the equipment and then the training fell on a random Wednesday, we were only informed the week before. My elderly parents did the training but are not strong enough to use the equipment. So after all that time waiting we now have equipment e we can’t use because I, the only able bodied person, couldn’t get an afternoon off.

I wish the reporters mentioned that he had MND. It seems relevant.

www.thestar.co.uk/news/school-education/south-yorkshire-teacher-with-mnd-pulled-sickie-for-pals-stag-do-8660882

‘You have made your call and that’s up to you’. Totally disagree. Thankfully my school doesn’t have that draconian attitude. We allow staff time off for graduations, medical appointments, taking children to university etc and in return we have a dedicated and loyal staff group. Saying You have made your call and that is up you isn’t fair.

Just imagine:
youre a magnificent teacher, dealing with educating our young, dealing with all sorts of walks of life, let it be understood all what adults have to endure in life so do children, and very often it is staff at school (support staff and teachers), who they find safe and confide in, often with either horrific or cruelly sad stories. You deal with all of this with aplomb and still deal with the utter bureaucracy of everyday and the nightmare parents who shout and swear on a daily basis.

youre invited to your best friends stag DP and it’s on a blooming school day, you know they won’t allow a mates stag party. You make a decision, one which you try to hide. Wrong, but every other profession do it all the bloody time, just your very big boss make a play on children must attend school, personally you don’t mind parents taking them to Euro Disney for a long weekend as you hear all about it even when they’ve been signed off sick by parents.

you get found out, any other person gets a slapped wrist, you get plastered all over the news. Career of a much loved and needed teacher in tatters. Fair? Hell no.

I hope the kids and parents cheer him on his day back after this.

• couldn’t edit loose to lose

Agree. It's absolutely pathetic and rather mean to embarrass him.

Having said that, I wouldn't want someone this dim teaching my children. Posting photos on fb, really?

I think the restrictions on allowing teachers to have term time off are too stringent and I have great regard for most teachers so I'm not teacher bashing.

However, lying to go on a stag do and then trying to cover up by illegally mutilating a government document is worse. Dodgy morals for a teacher.

The MND is nothing to do with the issue but it's a shame the case wasn't dealt with sooner.

It's bad enough that you might be recorded for anything you say. It must be tough being a teacher.

@Imdefonotmaddona where does it say he has been banned from teaching?

The only non paywall link I’ve seen is the Beeb where it says a ban would not be proportionate:

"A Teaching Regulation Authority (TRA) panel ruled in April that a prohibition order, which would see Wilson banned from teaching, was not proportionate, but made its findings into his conduct public earlier."

So not banned because it would be deemed excessive.

Defacing a passport is also an offence - criminal from memory but others may know better.

So on the face of it, he cheated his employer to go on a drinking weekend, defaced a government document to lie about it and was stupid enough to post on Facebook about it.

Of course he was sacked, he wasn’t banned according to the Beeb. His medical condition is not relevant unless his is suggesting it affects his judgement and ability to be honest.

Some schools will allow time off for this sort of thing. I have had time off granted (paid) for 3 weddings (both siblings and a friend) in 3 different schools. Another school let me have a day to compete is a prestigious sports event.

When my daughter needed major surgery I had a week off (I sent all planning) paid. I went back the day after she was discharged. My husbands job said ‘take as long as you need’ so he had a few days off afterwards to decompress.

I’ve been to funerals too but always unpaid (close family would have been paid I think).

Once my flight back from a weekend away was cancelled and I couldn’t come in on the Monday and they docked my pay for that too (despite the fact I contacted them on the Sunday evening and sent full plans in and had to do all the marking from that day when I returned.) Goodwill goes both ways. So I decided not to bother running a club the following year, so the students lost out.

There are good schools out there who do allow flexibility for family events etc. But there are plenty more who don’t and I’d imagine these days they’ll struggle to retain staff.

Yanbu - should never have been near the media

It's news worthy unfortunately because teacher bashing is popular amongst the press/media.

I agree with you OP.

I completely agree. I lied to an old HT when my good friend had died. I said he was my cousin as I knew I'd never be allowed the day off for a friend's funeral. My request for a cousin's funeral was denied. Myself and friend were both in our early 20s at the time.

Nrtft but there are reports of a Headteacher on the IoW who moved INSET days around so she could go on a cruise. Amongst other things. That is worse imho.

I know teachers who have been refused unpaid leave for funerals, weddings, moving house, child’s graduation and holidays.

All things that other jobs can take leave for.

I know people will say, ‘if you don’t like it, just leave’, and I just have. It’s great being able to take annual leave for things I want to do.

We do want to keep good teachers though and they should be able to have a life with options to take leave for important events.

Agree. There are too many column inches and news hours to cover these days. No one hurt, no real sanction, not banned. Not in the slightest bit newsworthy.

Yes, I read that too.
I would hate to be a teacher in this day and age.

Most teachers can get time off for important occasions. It is just they don’t want to loose pay. I just don’t think a stag do is that important.
He was very silly to let himself be photographed.

Someone must have an axe to grind with him, but I think tearing pages from his passport made this a stand out story

Yes but you did get to spend the summer holidays with your children.

What's most unreasonable here is that teachers can't ever take leave during term time! I couldn't cope with that so I sympathise with them.

I don’t know anyone who thinks this. Mainly because teachers talk about it all the bloody time!