teacher off sick AGAIN

[HeisInfuriating]

Advice please
DD new teacher this year is off sick all week.
This follows a three year pattern of her returning every Sept and then going off sick by half term. Doesn't return at all until following Sept.

Teacher has been moved year group from 6 to 4 this year so I wasn't expecting to suffer this.

In previous years a permanent supply is eventually sought.

What sickness benefits do teachers have? How can this be still happening?

I'm thinking more along the lines of when will the head act and source something permanent?

Math I might go one up from the face mask . Could you imagine me prancing around 30 teenagers in my hazchem suit with my bottle of dettol and a cloth? They would LOVE it.

Keep a not do well - known side-effect of teaching, being ill in the first week of holidays. We call it teacher flu. I get it in just about every holiday. It is a real pain at Christmas. At least we have nearly a full week off this year before Christmas itself, so will hopefully be able to function by then.

ill pupils knowingly dumped in school by parents who then can't be contacted In my first job, I had one Yr7 boy who came to my class having thrown up. I asked him if he'd just started being sick, but he'd been up all night with D&V. Why was he at school? Because his 'D'M had planned a shopping trip with a friend that she didn't want to cancel.

I am up early responding because I am once again getting cold so I can't sleep.

Few excellent teachers choose supply as a lifestyle ODFOD

I can understand how hard to be always physically fit when dealing with children! I only need to deal with my child, but if he catch something, I get it next week. Teachers got X 30! to deal with.
Even I get annoyed if some Mum says dc's got 38+ temp, but she's given calpol so dc should be alright. It's ok for healthy people, but child like mine always get it from them.

I believe Teachers, NHS workers,etc. are entitled to have better sickness policy than people who works in normal job, if you think about the working environment and importance of their work.

I think teachers are part of the problem. I (and my colleagues) go into school when we're ill.
I worked in the private sector for many years and wouldn't have gone into the office if unwell, yet I go into school.

I used to do supply teaching. It was totally expected that if I was covering a teacher for more than a week, that I took on responsibility for their planning and marking. This is not rare and didn't mark me out as special - it was just doing the job properly!
I would be very surprised if that had changed.

The expectation is definitely there but unfortunately most of the supply teachers we have had have not marked after school hours or planned carefully. The few we have had who have been really amazing we have done our best to nab permanently.

PeopleLie I did all that and would have felt terrible if I didn't. It is a hard job getting all the marking done if you've only been there for the day and each school has its own mad marking policy.

I will be on Monday mrz. Very true.

We have had heavy supply at our place in the past - rapidly improving inner city comp. Some are excellent and will take on marking, others won't or just don't understand (there seems to be an awful lot of overseas teachers who have relocated to the UK doing supply around us). We've had to pick up marking in our department and HOD does planning. We try to get people who can follow a scheme of work so they can follow it through without needing every lesson writing out in detail, but it doesn't always happen. Also, getting correct subject supply seems to be hard in Secondary.

The question people should be asking is: Why do people give up their teaching jobs? Could it be that it's too bloody difficult to do it properly carry out endless pointless admin and have a life.

Yes!

In Scotland the pay deal and conditions changed for supply teachers. They are now paid bottom of the scale regardless of experience if it's for less than 5 days. This works out at about £70/day. They can earn more working in Tescos/doing temp office work. They only get paid for school hours, so from 9-3. Where is the incentive to come in early to prepare/stay longer to mark?

There are (understandably) massive problems now getting supply in, especially for short term. There used to be a lot of very experienced teachers doing supply, particularly ones who had maybe taken early retirement but wanted to kerp their hand in/supplement their income. They came in before school/did marking. Not now.

I used to do supply and always marked/came in early, because I did get paid for it (and I would have felt bad not doing it).

That's shocking Keeptrudging. I did work for an agency and got £112 per day.

It's also worth considering that many good supply teachers will have days where they do regular supply at a school and therefore can't take on a full week. When I did supply nearly half my week was regular cover.

We had a similar situation at my school with a teacher who was off sick for almost 3 years. I seem to remember there being a clause that you had to be working on a certain day of the year for your sick pay to reset as it were.

We don't have agencies here - all supply is done through the LA. What's even more shocking is that many permanent colleagues didn't support supply colleagues when this was being negotiated. It was a case of 'I'm alright Jack'. Now they moan because they're having to cover classes for ill colleagues due to lack of supply .

I always used to get a day rate, no matter how long my day actually turned out to be!

I do remember permanent staff being very moany about supply. As I recall they felt we were overpaid but didn't consider that we had no job security to speak of or sick pay and that daily rates were calculated to take account of this and our inability to earn during school holidays.

Where I live, the public sector absence stats also reveal that teachers are the group within such workers with the lowest absence rates.

As I recall they felt we were overpaid I have the perception that supply is much less well paid than it used to be? Is that the case? I find it appealing in that you can choose to do the better bits of the job, even planning and marking, but be removed from the dreaded 'initiatives' that seem to be driving so many people away from the profession, such as work scrutiny, learnings walks, training shizzle with the zillion additional meetings that seem to be creeping in. Gone are the days of one hour after school on a Monday.

Please clear this up for me as I am getting very disillusioned at the moment and would like to know whether supply might be a viable option. I am UPS3 - so pricey. I also work for exam board quite a bit and have been offered a bigger role with them. I like to fantasise about my exit strategy on days like today when I feel bum and am sat surrounded by books I just can't bring myself to mark as the mere thought of it makes my head ache.

OP here
Sorry name changed

Well, teacher off again, one parent told last week it was Flu.

However, head has today sent a letter stating teacher will be off for all this week. Parent eve cancelled.

The children's books aren't even in school, all work has been worksheets and repetitive. No homework set over weekend.

Helpless sigh.

kinky I haven't taught for a long time now, so couldn't tell you current rates of pay.

I didn't like doing supply - I felt I got all the crappy parts of the job and none of the job security that comes with a proper contract. I wasn't as 'free' as I'd anticipated being because if you turn down work too often the agency stops asking and once you are in a school doing a long term cover you are as tied as any other member of staff but with no holiday or sick pay. I started hankering after my own classroom and kids that I could actually get to know and see through to the end of the year!

That said, I had my wedding during term time, so that was nice.

Well, teacher off again, one parent told last week it was Flu

So why are people tittle tattling?

The HT needs to sort out ongoing provision.

I have recently left a teaching post to go on supply, for a better work-life balance.
I get £110 a day and there is endless amounts of work, I can pick and choose.

I get £110 a day and there is endless amounts of work, I can pick and choose.

That's £20,900 a year assuming you work every single day there are children in. I loved doing supply, and it's a good safety net but it is unreliable and a drop in income.