Teacher wellbeing days for shopping

[ForAMinuteThere]

Nope - this isn't a bash. I saw an article in the Fail about it and wanted to add some support for the teachers of this world.

I am a non teacher. It looks hard. One day off for shopping is a nice gesture.

I expect mixed responses but personally, I think teachers staying sane and feeling worthy can only be a good thing.

(This isn't my first post, have NC)

Friends of mine in professional jobs who work a bit extra, at home etc also revive many perks. Yearly bonus, higher salary, staff mortgage rates, paid for away days, contributions to childcare, the list goes on.

Anyway as said previously IT'S NOT A RACE TO THE BOTTOM. If this will help recruitment and retention of staff, it's a great idea as teaching is in crisis as a profession.

Intents. I think you hit the nail on the head there when you say other professions work a ‘bit’ more.

Teachers contracted hours are 1265 per year. Someone working 40 hours per week (average full time hours) for 46 weeks per year is contracted for 1,800 hours. Add on just 2 hours overtime each week and it totals 1932 per year.

That’s 667 hours per year more so if you were to even that up you’d need to work around 17 hours per week more than your basic hours to equate to the average full time workers.

Totally appreciate that your hours are more condensed due to the holidays so I’m sure in reality it probably doesn’t feel like you work ‘fewer’ hours.

I definitely wouldn’t want to be a teacher, not because of the hours but just because I’m not particularly interested in other people’s children

Dorset - the HT of my ds' small primary school is also the Year 4,5 and 6 teacher (mixed year class). How he does it, god alone knows. I imagine he works very late and most of the weekend.

According to recent surveys the average teacher works 54 hours a week x 39 weeks = 2106 hours a year

Oh and most teachers I know do hours of work every day outside their contracted hours, not a couple of hours a week.

Not saying that other professions don’t do that too but just pointing out that they certainly don’t do less hours

Knittink. Yes correct, they’d have to do hours of overtime every day to be working the same hours as other professions when calculated over the year...that’s kinda my point!

If you only work 9 months of the year and want a full time salary you’re going to have to work longer hours to earn it. Hence my comment about the work being more condensed and intense.

Add on just 2 hours overtime each week

Try daily. Before and after school. Then whatever isn’t complete being completed at home.

dorset, I imagine you don't want to share with us exactly what your job is?

The 2 hours quoted was an absolute baseline for all professions. Most people will obviously work far more ‘overtime’ than that on average, including teachers.

However for teachers that overtime is on top of basic hours of 1265 per year. For other professions that overtime is on top of basic hours of 1840 per year.

1265 aren't our contracted hours : they are our 'directed hours'.

Dorset you completely misunderstand what the 1265 hours are for.

If you only work 9 months of the year and want a full time salary you’re going to have to work longer hours to earn it
This is an intersting point. Of course a teacher's salary is what it is, to earn it they must do what is in their contract no more and no less. If you view the job as part time then that is the salary for pat time - if you want more hours out of them you would need to pay more.
It's worth a look at the salaries and contact time some teachers in other countries have. We are pretty low down the list.

Dorsetdays

I think that the point people are making is that they work circa 50 or 60 hours per week but are only paid, according to your calculations, for 32.5 hours per week.

They are working nearly as many hours again unpaid as paid.

The same argument was raging about 'part time' GPs on another thread this week.

Mistressiggi. That’s exactly my point but maybe I’m not explaining it very well! I don’t view the job as part time and I’m sure it isn’t, BUT if you work full time hours over a shorter period you will have to work more hours during that time to make up the same hours.

So a similar analogy is my colleagues who work a condensed week out of choice. They still receive full pay and work the same full time hours but instead of working those hours over 5 days they work them over 4 and therefore have to work longer on those days.

Speaking as a former teacher, It sounds very gimmicky to me. The way to increase morale for teachers is to pay them well, recognize their professionalism and expertise with measures of academic freedom, and support them in the work they do.

But the HT can't pay more!

What do you mean by measures of academic freedom?

When I was a teacher I used to work every evening and one full day at the weekend. And then a few days each holiday too. I easily did an "extra" 17 hours a week.

A teacher friend of mine works 3 days a week. She used her two days off todo school work while her children are at school and works every evening too.

The point is we MUST do something to encourage STEM graduates to teaching. There are areas of the country where outstanding schools get no specialist responses to science and maths adverts.

My friends also get paid a hell of a lot more, can take time off to see their own kids assemblies/nativity/sports day and don't constantly have to read how lazy/crap/moany/incompetent they are.

My friend who works in banking also doesn't have everyone who's ever had a bank account thinking they know her job and can tell her how to do it better. And yet people think because they've been to school, they know what teachers are like and hand out advice.

Dorset teachers don't receive the same pay as other similarly qualified professionals. They receive less because they're not paid for the whole year.

Dorsetdays

Yes but people working compressed hours will still be paid for the hours they are contracted to work won't they? If you work 36 hours a week you could work them over 5 days or 3 long days, still 36 hours for 36 hours pay.

If you are a teacher working, as you argue 32.5 hours a week, that is what you are paid for and what you should work, not 60 hours a week whilst being paid for 32.5.

The point being whether it's because they work 39 weeks or 52 weeks, there is too much work to be done within the hours that they are paid.

My son, as an NQT, is working 50 - 60 hours a week for £23,000 a year. That is disgusting.

Speaking as a former teacher, It sounds very gimmicky to me. The way to increase morale for teachers is to pay them well, recognize their professionalism and expertise with measures of academic freedom, and support them in the work they do

Absolutely and that is, I’m sure, what all heads would like to be able to do.

In the absence of any money available to afford that (have you been watching the ‘School’ program on BBC?), ONE head has personally tried to do something nice for his staff. Something within the realms of possibility-that he can implement himself.

A lot of the posts on this thread suggest he should not have done it.

It may be a gimmick, but that is one lovely headteacher we have in charge of our schools and probably a dozen teachers that as a consequence feel valued and appreciated. I think it’s a good thing, not something to be criticised or bitched about. If he ends up feeling disillusioned and powerless like the superb head of Marlwood school from last week’s program (and his deputy?) and leaving-with his staff following, the that is far far far worse. Those are exactly the sort of people we DO want running our school.

Nobody anywhere is saying ALL teachers must get a day to go Christmas shopping.

I mean not requiring teachers to follow prescribed curriculum to the letter as one example of academic freedom.

I am looking at it from a macro rather than micro point of view. Teacher morale, recruitment, and retention are systemic issues.

I just have a dim view of much of the so-called employee appreciation/team building crap that goes on, not just in schools, but everywhere. Treat people like adult professionals, that's a good start.

I have a friend who teaches in an international school in Europe. She gets the usual school holidays, plus all teacher have two additional personal days - to take when they wish, as long as not too many staff are off on the same day and they can't be used at the start or end of main holidays, so can't be tagged on to the end of half-term, for instance.

Anyway, who says the days have to be used for shopping?