AIBU - It is not my job!

[RatherMyBed]

Morning, I'm looking for some opinions about my current work situation.

So I'm a teacher in a small school, there's only 3 classes in total. Our current caretaker (site maintainance officer) is retiring next week and we have been informed that he will not be replaced.

It is expected that the staff will share the duty of opening up the school early and locking up at 5:30pm every day. Next week, I've volunteered to a couple of early mornings but that's all I can manage as my DH works shifts and we have children in nursery. We have no family to help with childcare. Apparently this is not good enough, we all need to pull together and everyone has it hard. I physically can't do anything more.

AIBU to think this is NOT my responsibility! AIBU to say that I'm happy to help next week but after that, I'm not going in early to open the school or staying late to lock up. It is not a teacher/TA's job and that a replacement needs to be brought in?

Yanbu. Ask the union for definitive advice.

I thought it was additional duties connected to the job you had been employed to do. It has to be a reasonable adjustment from what I can remember
I would contact your union
Good luck OP

I had something I was told to do, I wasn't trained or experienced in that field. My union were great, I said exactly as advised every time it was brought up. It has now gone to someone else who is far more qualified. (I wasn't being bloody minded btw, there were legal implications which my work were trying to gloss over!)

Def speak to your union.

It's the same at our school.
I blame the Conservatives...

Who will be cleaning? Can that person not be entrusted to open and close?

Yanbu. You were employed as a teacher not a caretaker. It's not your responsibility. Stand firm and involve the union.

What will happen when you reach your directed time hours? If you end up being forced to work 3 or 4 hrs a day over your teaching hours you will soon hit your limit before the year is out.

Yes, what about the cleaners?

Talk to your union rep and organise!

I suggest you challenge the Head on costs. If they employed a local person to clean 1.5 hours in the morning and 1.5 hours in the evening, entrusted with the keys at £16 per hour, that's £240 per week. For a clean school and someone to open and close.

Beat them at their own game.
Questions to ask:

How does this fit into directed time? That should include trapped time between opening/ closing and actually teaching.

If it doesn't, which duties will you be released from?

Who will provide H&S training? Every member asked to do this will have to attend; at my last job we even needed "ladder training". Our caretaker also did other jobs, such as risk assessing pregnant members of staff. Who will do that?

What is the accident policy?

Who will have spare keys if the person on duty is unexpectedly off?

Etc....

I’m a teacher and you must ask for your directed time budget. Your HT is required to produce one to show the 1265 hours you’re required to be on school site and this includes inset days, parents evening etc.

My contact says I have to undertake any additional duties to fulfil my professional role. This refers to duties related to teaching and learning such as marking and planning. NOT opening and closing the school!

Another thing to consider is whether the ex-caretaker was on call in case alarms were set off overnight/ at weekends. If so, who will cover this duty?

No that is not your job - contact your union for advice ASAP!

ringletsandtwiglets Makes a good point. I would also add what happens during school holidays? This is the time most schools carry out maintenance work, and contractors need to be let into the building. Who would be responsible for this, and who would supervise them whilst on site?

YANBU
Union and look at your job description

They have to be joking, as if teachers weren’t stressed enough ffs. And mention Ofsted for good measure, the only thing some heads care about