Why do teachers still have jobs?

[StrangeTimes]

So my husband has just lost his job from next week. He's a coach driver. My best mate has lost her job from this week, she used to work in a cinema. I have many friends now out of work and desperately trying to get jobs in supermarkets.

However teachers will not be working now for many months, so how come they're not being made redundant?

I'm not being goady I genuinely want to know. I'm glad they are still being paid, I'd hate for them to be in our position. But why?

Are other jobs "safe" like this too?

[BertNErnie]

Vital role of schools

Those who work in and with our schools rightly take their place next to our NHS staff and other critical workers as central to our efforts in battling this virus.

School leaders around the country are taking the lead in supporting families through this difficult time, and we are keenly aware that the extraordinary measures that have been taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 present an unprecedented challenge for schools, trusts, and local authorities, as well as the communities they serve.

We appreciate the selfless dedication that school, trust, and local authority staff, demonstrate in their work every single day. During this difficult time, we are asking you to go further still so that we can collectively address the challenges we face. You are vital to the country’s response to this crisis, and we offer our full support and gratitude during this difficult time. As this crisis progresses, we will aim to provide you with as much certainty and flexibility as possible, and will do all we can to support the vital service you are providing.

We expect schools and local authorities should work together to ensure that different settings are supported to stay open wherever possible, taking into account their circumstances and cohort (for example, special settings and alternative provision). And, we want local authorities to help coordinate what this means, working with education settings to deliver the services required. That includes academies, the independent sector, and boarding schools.

Throughout the rest of this document, by ‘school’ we mean those that are either maintained by the local authority or are run by a single or multi academy trust.

[BertNErnie]

In terms of why we are being paid, this is also set out in the following document:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures/guidance-for-schools-about-temporarily-closing#pay

I have copied and pasted it below for ease of reading:

Pay

Will teachers and other school staff continue to be paid?

Yes. Teachers and other school staff will continue to be paid during this period as normal, and we expect schools to continue to fulfill their contractual duties to their staff.

In short, the role of schools are central to battling the virus and it seems as if some posters should really be taking the lack of school work or contact that is taking place directly with the head teachers of those settings as it gets clearly stated above what we are being expected to do during this time.

[wasgoingmadinthecountry]

Additionally, we are expected to do online learning. Fair enough.

I am doing OU and other courses about PTSD in children, counselling and children's mental health as we are all aware that children have had lots to deal with.

Some are free, some I'm (happily) paying for.