Paternity leave and cover lessons

[AndSoFinally]

Asking on behalf of my DP, who is a secondary school teacher.

He is just starting paternity leave on Monday. Went in today for the 2 inset days and has been told he has to provide cover lessons while he is on paternity leave.

Is this right? Do the female teachers have to provide cover lessons while they are on maternity leave?

He only gets paid for the first week, so damned if I think he should donanything for the second week even if he has to for the first!

Does anyone know where he stands on this? We are in Wales in case that makes any difference.

Thanks all

Yes, my husband also had to provide cover lessons. As he knew well in advance, this should have been easy to prepare. It's only 2 weeks,no? Most short term planned absences, you should provide cover. It's simple and reduces your colleagues workload, why should they have to cover when he had enough notice to plan lessons ahead of time in his ppa?

No he's only been told today that he needs to do this.

Did your husband get paid for both weeks of leave? Or did he provide the work for free in his second week?

Surely the unpaid nature of the second week means they should be using his wages to pay someone to cover, rather than expecting DP to do it?

If this is the expectation, I'm starting to see why teachers feel so hard done by. I'm not having anything to do with my work place while I'm on mat leave, and they're paying me!

He's also having 3 months parental leave at the end of the year. Is he going to be expected to provide lessons for this too? This 3 months is entirely unpaid

Presumably you would have needed to prepare for your absence and whoever is covering for you, much like anyone else. That is all that is being asked of your husband and that he didn't foresee that is his own fault. When you take any sort of absence from work that is voluntary, you are expected in any field to make preparations for your absence. Perhaps your husband is new to the workforce and doesn't understand his responsibility? The three months will likely be undertaken by a longer-term cover teacher who will be able to plan day to day lessons based on context your husband provides. Surely your husband is very fortunate in taking 3 months off, I've not known anyone to do such a thing. I imagine being so fortunate you perhaps might not be used to minor inconveniences such as thinking of how your privilege affects your colleagues

When I left work I gave a handover to my team and told them I'd see them in 9 months. I'm not expected to ring in on a daily basis and give them a plan for the day.

Shared parental leave is something available to everyone who qualifies, as far as I know. It's not a particularly rare thing or something to feel enormously privileged over. It's just the father sharing the mother's mat leave. I'll return to work at the point he goes off.

Is no one surprised at having to work during a period of leave?! This seems very alien to me

My h didn’t set cover when he had paternity leave (though 12 years ago).

I suspect that technically he shouldn’t have to. He could check with the union - or Google - if he really doesn’t want to. It is very normal in education to provide cover for short term absence though. He is the one with responsibility for his classes’ progress it makes sense for him to decide what they work on while he’s not there. He should totally take the easiest route to cover though (booklets from TES or Twinkl? Oak academy lessons?)

For the three month absence he wouldn’t be expected to provide cover.

He wouldn't be working during his leave though, would he? He would prep the cover before he goes on leave, as anyone else does in any job before they go off on holiday or leave. Is he not capable of thinking ahead and planning?

@EllieNBeeb no, they've said he needs to set the work daily, he can't do it as a chunk in advance

[quote AndSoFinally]@EllieNBeeb no, they've said he needs to set the work daily, he can't do it as a chunk in advance[/quote]
Are you sure he’s understood this correctly? This doesn’t sound likely. Most schools would prefer a ‘pack’ of work so that it’s all ready in advance.

If they do insist on daily, he should contact his union or choose a series of Oak Academy lessons and send a link over each day.

DH set lessons, yes, but all in advance (or possibly week by week).

He also continued to deal with emails & other issues related to his additional responsibilities during dc2’s first couple of weeks. That was pretty annoying but unfortunately he couldn’t just leave it.

I would always leave cover for a short period, unless too sick to do so. ML is different (as is the three month period your dh is having later) as the person covering is more likely to be one person and they can plan units start to finish. The sending it in daily stuff is bullshit though I would challenge that, if that's what they mean.
It's good for fathers to take the time off, and every one who does it makes it a bit easier for the next one to request it. DP worked part time and was one of two men in the school doing it - you can imagine how many mothers did!

Yes they've definitely said to set it daily. I'm suspicious that this is so he has to touch base regularly and they will use the opportunity to ask him things or get him to do other tasks during his time off.

They just don't seem to treat their staff very well and so I wondered if this was just another example of them taking advantage, but seems as though it's pretty normal to a greater or lesser degree so will suck it up. Thanks for the perspectives, everyone.

Setting it daily is not normal at all and I would not suck that up remotely. You need him focused at home - so he can't stay up in the early hours because he has to contact work at 7am? Fuck that for a game of soldiers.

That’s crazy. I’m about to go on paternity leave at some point in the next few weeks, and all I’m expected to do is pick a couple of topics for each class that whoever is covering for me (within the department) will teach. Definitely no resources/lesson plans etc. I’ve done the same when covering other people’s PL.