AIBU to think the teacher sickie story is not newsworthy?

[Imdefonotmaddona]

A teacher pulled a “ sickie “ to attend a stag do.

so he told them he was vomiting but instead went to Portugal for a stag do.
but despite lying was not banned from teaching.

this has been on on social media and news like BBC.

I get he did wrong but am I the only one a bit confused why it’s news worthy 🤣

I feel a little sorry for him. I understand he done wrong but surely this it not the level of misconduct that needs to his face splashed over the news ?

S’tricky. I had to request leave for my godmother’s (great aunt) funeral. Different school, my cousin (also a teacher, but p/t) got married on a Friday, also had to request and got paid leave. My dad died very suddenly while I was leading a foreign trip. There was absolutely no way I could just abandon the trip. I imagine many jobs would have allowed me to leave immediately.

We do get a great holiday allowance, but it is inflexible. I know, boo bloody hoo, but I’ve had a stressful time recently trying to view/buy a house in an area nowhere near me.

I was pissed off some years ago that I had to arrange my horse being pts and was not paid. I think former headteachers would have paid me, given it was very obviously a very shit day for me. It was at his discretion and I just found it upsetting. They didn’t use supply, so it didn’t cost them anything.

Yanbu. Jesus he did something silly it's not newsworthy, like if a child was put at risk.

I'm in Ireland and if we do a 20 hour online course during the summer we can take 3 paid days during the year.

It's newsworthy because of the Stag Do issue and the trying to cover up with an illegal act.
I'm not saying other things shouldn't be newsworthy.
Yes, I keep saying the length of time was unfortunate but his current medical condition is irrelevant.

This is the problem though, they can’t get time off for important occasions. When I was a teacher I was not allowed to go to my cousins wedding, to my next-door neighbour of over 20 years funeral or to any of my own children’s school events – I offered to take all of these unpaid but was still not allowed. One of the reasons I left the profession!

Why is the stag do of any interest? It's a non story. Again I urge you to go check any online tribunal outcomes for other professional bodies.. there are FAR more interesting cases than this that aren't reported. This kind of thing happens all the time. It's maybe quite interesting/gossip for his immediate colleagues and that's about it...
It's just dredging this up for no good reason and causing stress to a dying man and his family...

I’m sorry but every other profession does not get to take leave for a stag do.

Revealing how ignorant you are about the reality of many other roles does not help your cause at all.

I can’t count the number of weddings, hens nights, funerals (including of friends and colleagues who have died from suicide due to the pressure of this job), baby showers, christenings, major birthdays, christmases, Easters, public holidays etc etc etc I’ve missed over 15 years. It’s never occurred to me my profession was the only one making these sacrifices - a moment’s thought or a bit of life experience would immediately tell me that’s unlikely to be so.

Can you not book annual leave for these events?

Lots of jobs have periods when you are just not able to book leave in. There are other jobs that tell you when you have to take your leave.

As a teacher myself, I can see why this person felt the need to lie. The holiday request would have been denied anyway and he would have missed a key life event for one of his friends.

I was denied going to my own brothers wedding as he was getting married abroad and I couldn’t be granted the time. I’ve been denied going to funerals because the person who has passed is not ‘immediate family’ - The holidays are great, but not when you’re unable to go to personal and extremely important events throughout the year.

I once had a class whose parents started a WhatsApp group about me and started a false rumour that I was getting time off work to take my child on holiday. It turned into a massive deal in which I was questioned about. Nothing was ever done or said about the blatant lies.

I must add that I am actually fortunate to be in a school with a supportive headteacher. It is not their decision and they have strict rules to stick to too. I am glad this story is bringing attention to this issue that has been going on for years.

When teachers are leaving in droves - so they say - I can well understand why they wouldn’t fire hm. Such a thing shouldn’t be media-newsworthy, though - there’s more than enough real news to fill the pages.

Lack of flexibility for school staff is an absolute nightmare but tbf it does depend on the school.

My current school has been happy to sanction days off for me to attend my daughter's first year uni prizegiving and two days for her graduation due to distance.

My previous school made me jump through hoops when my elderly dad broke his back, then threatened me with absence procedures when he was on end of life the following year and I was signed off with stress. I was forced into taking an unpaid sabbatical rather than being allowed to take the sick leave I was entitled to.

Unfortunately you don't tend to know the difference before you start working with them.

I've been a teacher for 26 years. I have been allowed days off for moving, afternoons off for sports days and school plays and my last school was really flexible about things like this, especially if my colleagues and I did cover favours for each other in our free periods so school didn't incur costs.

Unfortunately, I have had to miss out on friends weddings abroad, visiting unwell relatives, and family holidays but I've accepted that is the pay off for the long summers. It actually pisses me off when other teachers do things like this because when slt find out it makes them less likely to be flexible to the rest of us. Budget cuts and staff abusing the teachers generous sick leave entitlements have made my current school impose a horrible staff attendance policy where you are hauled into meetings and given warnings and targets for very small amout of absence which is resulting in sick staff coming to work and spreading their germs.

It's not newsworthy but he is a dick for doing it. I would welcome the ability to have a day or two we could use flexibly each year though but the government will never fund that, they aren't even funding the pay rises they begrudgingly gave out so it is adding to further cuts and pressure.

👏👏👏

It's a regulated profession so as with all regulated or public office professions it is considered by journalists to be in the public interest. He was lucky because dishonesty is considered a character flaw that cannot be remediated and so often is a sackable offence in regulated professions unlike mistakes and misjudgments that can be learned from and put right. I am guessing that the newsworthy bit was that he didn't get sacked. Do you really want someone dishonest looking after your children?

It is fraud as he was being paid.
But.. he is daft from posting it on Facebook and there is more to it as it was a mate who dobbed on him

Seen this many times with my work....

Perhaps I should have made clear, it’s newsworthy because the sensation seeking media and public enjoy the Stag Do element in particular. I actually find the damage to the Passport, by a person in a position of trust with children, more interesting. I hope teachers don't lie and destroy government documents all the time. We all find different things less or more interesting and the media is in the business of click bait whether we approve of that or not.

His later diagnosis and current medical issues are a completely different issue but will stir public interest even more. I’m not sure if subsequent illness should ameliorate the original wrongdoing.

Having worked with someone who sat on GMC tribunals I am aware of where to find and have read some of their findings.

Canada also have much smaller class sizes than the U.K and an understanding of staff safety.

As PPs have said…there is virtually NO flexibility in teaching. I’ve been at my school for 9 years, rarely had a day off for any reason. My 97 year old Uncle died recently…he was the last of my aunts/uncles and also my godfather. His funeral was in Preston…a 5 hour journey for me (and that’s being conservative…it was at 10am on a Friday morning, so it’s anyone’s guess how long it would actually take to get there!)

I asked for the Friday off to attend…and was refused…told ‘immediate family only’ and only a half day would be given then!

On the same day that my request was refused, I was asked if I would be an additional teacher to go on the Year 6 5-day residential. I refused…petty probably, but goodwill has to work both ways!

Good teachers would ask months in advance to attend life events like weddings, graduations, etc, for which they would know the dates of in advance.

And would still be refused the time off @grumpygrape
My colleague was refused a day off to go to her own brother's wedding.

I retired earlier than planned, simply because I'd missed out on so many events due to the hard line taken on time off.

I have said I think the restrictions in some/most? areas of teaching are over strict.

I have worked in Corporate roles for over 20 years of all sizes and the education profession for 7 years.

So yes I am well aware of the differences.

Exactly what I said to my husband when I saw the story! He was a bit naughty, but in what world is it newsworthy?!

What are the restrictions in your profession against taking leave?

A few people on here saying he was stupid to post a photo. From the article I read, he didn’t. His friend did.

I also think it shouldn’t be newsworthy. Who actually contacted the press and told them this story?

No leave permitted over Christmas/new year, Easter or any other public holidays.

Annual leave the only option for any event, including events held at night or on weekends, and can only be taken a week at a time,

Annual leave can be cancelled or declined if it cannot be covered. It regularly cannot be covered.

Welcome to the world of resuscitating
people for a living.