To think I shouldn’t have to attend 100% of meetings if I’m part time?

[parrrtime]

I work three days a week, but our staff meetings fall on a day I work.

AIBU in thinking that I shouldn’t actually have to attend all of these? Not to be purposefully obtuse about it but sometimes I could really do with leaving a bit earlier and tomorrow is one of these. I am wondering if it’s worth arguing that I really shouldn’t have to stay.

There is never anything important covered in the meetings, by the way.

What you're describing is basically 'work to rule' - employees pretty much sticking to their contracted hours and rarely doing anything over and above this.

Officially, most in my dept are 'contracted' to work 8 hours a day, Mon-Fri. But we all know the job involves some early starts, late nights, overseas travel and social events. This is normal; I don't think I've ever worked only my contracted hours. We can say no to certain things, of course, but those who do this regularly will be seen as uncommitted. It's just how it is.
In OP's case, regardless of what's in her contract, she should 'show willing' when it comes to any meetings, overtime etc.

OP is asking if she is right in saying that she doesn't have to attend every meeting.
She is correct. According to her part time working agreement she is not required to attend every meeting.

It's irrelevant what other contracts/workplaces state or expect. And OP absolutely will work over and above within her directed working time. Impossible not to. It is the norm as you correctly state.

No.

of course you do
you would miss out if you didnt

Well that's debatable.
But what do you think the part timers who don't work on the day of the staff meeting should do?

Might be part of your agreement ( especially if you work in an academy trust that do not follow Teachers Pay and Condition but must be part of your total pro rata directed time.
In practical terms part time teachers may have another job elsewhere, carer responsibilities or be travelling miles to school.
Often PPA time, an extra paid handover session on staff meeting day, staff meeting on alternate days over two weeks to meet the working days if part time staff, job share information sharing are used to make this work.

Teachers Pay and Condition 51.9 51.10 ( and earlier paragraphs) assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67165b0d9242eecc6c849b4b/School_teachers_pay_and_conditions_document_and_guidance_2024_.pdf

ime they complain!

in my work we vary our team meetings to accommodate the part timers

As others have said, this is not true. What if you had another part time job in the days you don’t teach? You couldn’t come in then. They can only ask you to come in and then pay you or give you time in lieu. It’s not mandatory.

There are clearly a lot of non teachers on here who don’t understand how it works in teaching.

You DO NOT have to attend 100% of meetings if you are part time. If you work 0.6, you only attend 60%. In fact I don’t attend any staff meetings as I work 0.4 and meetings don’t fall on my working day and my school do not pay or give time in lieu to come in on your non working day so I’m not.

Most teachers, whether FT or PT, work more than their contracted hours when lesson planning, marking and admin are considered. But this is specifically about directed time.

FT teachers would certainly complain if they were expected to attend 66% more meetings outside their teaching hours than their contracts required. Or perhaps you think nobody would mind an extra couple of inset days at the start of the holidays?

If they’re not on your working day then no you don’t have to attend - they may offer to pay you or time in lieu and ask you to but you may have another job etc so can’t attend anyway. You don’t have to.
edit sorry quoted the wrong person!

@parrrtime Your meetings need to be part of your pro-rata directed time. It is likely that attending every meeting would take you over this.
(England and Wales).
Please see the Teaching Pay and Conditions Document, unless you are in an independent school or academy trust who do not abide by this. 51.6 - 51.11
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67165b0d9242eecc6c849b4b/School_teachers_pay_and_conditions_document_and_guidance_2024_.pdf

If you are being paid for the time, yes of course

Do you routinely pay some colleagues to do a piece of work and routinely not pay others to do exactly the same piece of work?

Because if you do, you're working for a shit company and it is not the employees' fault if they'd rather not do for free what others are being paid to do.

But she isn't.

This sort of thing gives part time workers a bad name

No, because the statutory guidance by the DfE also includes a clause that says that teachers are expected to work additional hours to carry out their professional duties in relation to planning and assessing learning of pupils.

This is about staff meetings over and above, not about teaching pupils. The many hours spent extra are to teach pupils.

So teaching is clearly a different case.

But in most jobs, if there are mandatory meetings, then yes, you will spend a greater proportion of your time going to them if you are a part time worker than if you are a full time worker.
Where I work, important team meetings are generally scheduled for a time when all part time team members are working because excluding a part time worker from the team meeting would be discriminatory.

Not a teacher but in my previous part time job team meetings were deliberately on Wednesdays when PT staff would be there.
as a part timer I always spent a higher percentage of my time at team meetings, and supervision, and mandatory training, that’s just how it goes.

I don’t understand why you could just do 1/2 the meeting because u work 1/2 the hours

that’s like saying part timers only need 1/2 the info to do there job because they only work 1/2 the hours

Of course you should if they fall on your working days. We have the bulk of meetings Tues-Thurs so if you’re in those days, you have more meetings. You can’t ask to attend 70% of meetings for example, that’s ridiculous and I’d laugh if someone asked me that

You’re clearly not a head teacher then. As this is exactly what I was told by my head - part timers attend a percentage of meetings.

If shift worker worked 9-5 would you expect them to come in early to attend an 8am meeting unpaid that their colleagues who worked the 8-4 shift were being paid to attend?

If you want them at the meeting, pay them to attend it. That’s not hard to understand.

What I find fascinating is how British workers (and depressingly it’s us women a lot of the time) have to be absolute sticklers for what is fair, and will read the small print for anything which they think is a minor infraction on their rights.

the number of people saying on here “yeah you don’t understand how teaching contracts work”…

So if it’s that black and white, then why hasn’t @parrrtime gone to her line manager and said “I contractually don’t have to be at this meeting, can I skip it?”

Come on. The real truth is that the OP wants to get off work early, doesn’t want to say it to their manager, is huffing about the fact contractually she’s part time and doesn’t have to be there, and wants a sympathy echo chamber.

In the meantime, surely we can just establish whether she can leave work early or not according to what her contract specifies?!!