New research has shown that teachers work more unpaid overtime, and suffer more workload-based stress than any other profession.
The Trade Union Congress (TUC) found that in secondary schools, 57.5% of teaching staff worked unpaid overtime, averaging 12.5 hours per week. The figures are similar for primary school teachers, as 61.4% worked overtime for an average of 12.9 hours a week.
In addition, 41% of teachers in private schools can’t find the time to take a full, uninterrupted 40 minute lunch break. It’s not just teaching staff, however, who work additional hours for no extra pay; 37.6% of school staff including playground staff, teaching assistants, caretakers and cleaners worked overtime - the highest figure of any sector.
It should come as no surprise, then, to find out that teaching is one of the most stressful jobs around – in the top 3 most stressful jobs, according to Sir Cary Cooper, professor of Organisational Psychology and Health at the University of Manchester’s business school. Sir Cary said: “Of all the occupations I’ve studied, and that’s about 80, teachers are in the top three most stressed occupations. The hours are long and antisocial, the workload is heavy and there is change for change’s sake from various governments.”
There has been no shortage of stories recently of teachers being reduced to tears on a daily basis. Mary Bousted, the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) General Secretary, shared a tale in an article for the Times Educational Supplement (TES) that has opened many eyes to the daily pressures teachers are faced with. A young man, during a conference on childhood and adolescent mental health, told her that while he was concerned about his own mental wellbeing, he was more concerned about his primary school teacher partner, who he’d find crying on the kitchen floor after work. Another revelation in the news is of the young teacher who has the performance objective of not crying in the staffroom.
It’s often individual stories like this that really bring issues to life and support statistics, which are often taken with a pinch of salt. It also sheds light on why over half of teachers are considering leaving the profession in the next two years. This survey, carried out by YouGov and the National Union of Teachers (NUT), is yet more proof that teachers aren’t getting the support they need.
Amongst all of this is the figures that suggest England will need 160,000 extra teachers over the next three years to cope with the expected rise in school pupils.
Dr Bousted also wrote: “Teachers…too often are expected to sacrifice their health, their relationships and their happiness to the job. I speak to too many teachers who are exhausted from the constant stress of never feeling they are on top of their workload; who know that there is always something else to do.” She recommends school leaders collect data on how many hours their staff, particularly teachers, are working and why they’re working so late in order to identify problems.
At NCFE we know the value teachers and other school staff offer to not only their learners but to society. You impart wisdom onto young people and shape our next generation for the future ahead. Your work cannot be underestimated, and it’s terrible to hear that many of you are struggling so badly. While attracting new teachers to the profession is necessary to cope with the demand of more pupils, it’s important to ensure our existing teachers are not being run into the ground; sadly it seems many are. You need to not only feel valued in your job, but be able to have a work-life balance and time to wind down. Longer hours negatively impact on mental health, and can make people working them less productive in the long run; it becomes a vicious circle.
We want you to know that NCFE is here to support you in any way we can. We understand that you’re likely under a lot of pressure at the moment and we want to do our bit to make your working day that bit easier. Your Centre Support Assistant is always available on the phone for support and advice, and we have lots of free learning resources to help support your qualification delivery.
Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has recently announced review groups into areas that impact teachers’ workloads the most, including planning and marking. Ms Morgan has been criticised in the past for not fully understanding the workload and the subsequent pressure impacting on teachers; she’d previously suggested that teachers should not be allowed to send emails or work after 5pm.
It’s clear that the government need a greater understanding into why so many teachers are struggling with their workload, and the subsequent long hours and stress that come with that. General Secretary of the NUT Christine Blower has called on the government to urgently tackle the “crisis” in teaching in schools. We hope the government are taking this seriously and that their new plan of action does something to reduce the pressure of teachers around the country and give them their lives back.
Are you one of the many teachers struggling with workload? What do you find is eating up your precious time? What do you think could be done to improve your situation?
