Interested to know what others think about this article on BBC?

[boundarysponge]

My weekly juggling act - being a teacher to other children and a mum to my own https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yvvr5z2pro

Can I ask what the current maternity pay is then? I assumed it was the same as the majority of public sector workers but I’m guessing it’s a lot less?

genuine question.

That’s also true for a lot of other jobs.

4 weeks full pay, 2 weeks at 90% pay, and 12 weeks half pay plus Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP), followed by 21 weeks SMP and 13 weeks unpaid

The point is like many other jobs/sectors there is recruitment crisis in teaching. So we need to make it more attractive. For everyone saying there are lots of hard jobs, we aren’t as a country struggling to recruit enough accountants, lawyers, building management consultants. We are at crisis point with teachers.

I wouldn’t go back to teaching for 100k a year. It’s not worth my mental health. And I do actually miss the teaching it, working with teenagers.

Yes, so what?
The article was about a teacher, so she talked about teaching.

It actually isn’t as good as other public sector workers. My SIL is a nurse and her mat pay was much better than mine.

I do not think teachers have the monopoly of hard work, or finding it exceptionally difficult to juggle work and motherhood.

I have however, worked in both the private sector (accountant) and as a teacher and without a doubt teaching is harder in terms of the mental load. Again I don’t doubt this isn’t present is other careers.

As an accountant I worked 50/60 hours a week but got paid for 40. I didn’t get overtime for my pay but I did get a bonus. I also had more flexibility in when, and where I worked. And my hourly pay was more.

As a teacher I work 60 hours a week but get paid for 32. I don’t get overtime or bonus. I do get the holidays which is a massive help, although I do work (for free) about 4 out of these 12 weeks. I have no flexibility over where and when I worked. I cannot take Dr or dentist appointments during term time unless it’s a hospital appointment.

The hardest thing I find is how critical everyone is of teachers. As an accountant I was automatically respected, no one questioned how hard I worked or queried if I deserved my pay/holidays. As a teacher it seems like everyone does.

Also as an accountant, I was responsible for my own work. If I did my part correctly then I was confident. As a teacher I am responsible for 1000 children, and if they don’t achieve I am held accountable regardless.

I will say teaching doesn’t have the embargo on hard work, being exhausted or stressed but for a job that takes so much training, is so underpaid compared to other graduate roles, it receives such little respect.

I find it much harder than working as an accountant despite the hours being relatively
similar - to the point I will be another statistic and joining those teachers leaving the profession as I step back into accountancy at the end of this academic year

Yep @boundaryspongeI saw the headline earlier and rolled my eyes. Then reminded myself I had clicked on the BBC site and only had myself to blame…!

That’s interesting. I didn’t realise.

and just to confirm I really value teachers and don’t doubt most work very hard and it’s tough (I’ve done it!).

my point was that lots of other jobs are too.

Thank you.

I can’t remember what mine is in current role. I think it’s just standard statutory….im going to look just to see out of interest.

I don’t doubt it. As I say, I don’t think teachers have the monopoly of ‘my job is exhausting’ BUT there is a teaching retention crisis and teachers are leaving the profession in droves.

For me - it’s less about the work load as opposed to all the other elements along side it. Being called a ‘fucking bitch’ by pupils, sexually assaulted by pupils and told its ‘boys being boys’ by senior leadership. having parents take their child on holiday for 3 weeks in year 11 and then call me a cunt because I won’t offer one on one tuition to catch them up when ‘their taxes pay my wage’s’.

As an accountant - that doesn’t happen. There may be difficult stake holders but it’s nowhere near what it’s like working in a school. It’s the feeling of coming home everyday feeling like I’m failing when I’ve done at least 5 free hours overtime that day.

It isn’t the workload. It’s everything else. And honestly - I get paid more to be an accountant and I can work from home.

@aspirationalferret I think it’s hard for all working parents juggling everything. The comments on this thread just reinforce the disregard the general public have for the profession. There must be a reason for a recruitment & retention crisis. People are just leaving in droves. Once Gen X retire I think it will get worse. We bought houses when they were cheaper & are conditioned to just do extra for no more pay. The younger staff coming through just refuse to take on extras for no pay. Or they just leave for a better paid job with better work life balance.

It’s not really the hours worked rather the intensity of those hours & the scrutiny from pupils, SLT & parents on a WhatsApp group critiquing every move & complaining if they aren’t happy.

I feel guilty that I have missed my own children collecting awards or performing in something because I am taking other students on a residential or to collect an award for something I organised. So I have hand on heart often prioritised other children over my own. I think lots of us do & don’t really expect a big fuss - but a thank you helps, and just simply not being continually criticised.

One of the reasons for a recruitment crisis isn’t the money or the hours - we all know that before we sign up to the job. We are often criticised in a way other professions are not. It gets a bit wearing.

I’m not surprised they struggle to recruit for subjects like computer science, maths, science. Why on earth would someone work for half the salary they could get in industry?

Now your mentioning it I have been annoyed with a lot of the random articles on the bbc pages recently,it is like interns are writing them? maybe they are testing out ai writing or something?in fact that does make sense and maybe these days article writers are using ai.no offence to ai.

That's exactly what I thought! Thats just normal working mum life (without the long holidays though)

You really think other professionals are criticised?
Again, a lot of complaints from teachers just show that most have no experience of life and work outside a school

Your teacher salary reflects the fact you are expected to work a professional number of hours and work during some of the holidays. I don't know why so many teachers struggle to grasp that.
It's mind boggling.

Teachers salaries are pretty decent , you clearly know the expectation isn't a 32 hour week and 12 weeks of holiday. Noone I know went into teaching thinking that. Everyone knew that as professionals they would have work to do outside the core school day

@Tensetickle no I don’t see numerous posts about other professions tbh. Rarely do you hear accountants, lawyers, supermarket workers, waitresses mentioned on MN for example. I mean surely traffic wardens & estate agents should get more air time 🤷🏻‍♀️

Yes I knew about the hours & salary & only being able to go on hols at certain times. I don’t complain & not sure why other teachers do.

I like the job because it’s never dull & I like teenagers. However you can’t deny that it must be quite tiring keeping them all busy working all week. I worked in industry before teaching & it’s just a fact that there are challenges associated with this job that you can’t understand unless you have done the job.

It’s really not family friendly for 39 weeks/year. That’s why so many women are leaving the profession. There is a genuine crisis - my son had at least 2 GCSE subjects with no teacher from October to June last year as they couldn’t find anyone. DD had one GCSE subject with no teacher for almost a year. It will just get worse if the working conditions don’t improve. I’m glad my children are almost finished.

It's a parenting site, with big education forums. That's why there's a lot of chat about teachers

I do think a lot of teachers are very naive about what other work is like. As exemplified by that BBC article.

Anyone paid a full time professional salary is going to face a difficult juggle if they have children and is going to have very limited evening time.

If it’s such nirvana, @Tensetickle ,why are so many leaving? Or not starting at all.

Could it be the violent pupils, aggressive parents, a curriculum so huge that is impossible to deliver, or being expected to be a parent and psychologist to pupils as well as a teacher?

Reception teachers now have to change 4 year olds nappies. No-one signed up for that.

I never understand this criticism of teachers.

Most dentists have no work experience outside dentistry, most doctors have no work experience outside a hospital, most mechanics have no work experience outside a garage...

And teachers have as much life experience as anyone else - they all live in the world every day.

If the article was about that , I bet there would’ve been a lot more sympathy.

The last straw for me was when using the BBC weather app it wanted me to register!
Eh no....have just unistalled it now and using one of several other weather apps instead🙄

Genuine question here. Why does England have such a teacher retention crisis when over the border in Scotland it’s the opposite and teachers can’t get jobs they are so few and far between?

I agree with this, people just have no real understanding of it.

Much higher pay. Starting on over 40k (England about 34k), and higher yearly increments.

I also suspect (entirely based on a few Scottish teachers I know) Scottish schools do less of the ‘restorative conversations’ and ‘reflection time’ when a child clunks a teacher than English schools do, and that there’s a bit more of an actual consequence. Actual consequences are very rare birds in English primaries.

Thats quite a bit higher than in England, especially in primary where the 'ups' etc practically don't exist as so few schools can afford to pay them. For the level of qualifications required and the hours expected I do think England is low and should be more in line with Scotland.

I also just think the load has become frankly ridiculous, Ofsted's new expectations have made that even worse and the saddest thing is that the changes they've made dont benefit the children or teaching staff, they just sound good on paper.