Unions have accused the Department for Education of deliberately delaying the publication of a survey which found that one in four teachers work more than 60 hours per week.
The National Education Union and three other teachers’ unions in England remain in dispute with the government over pay and working conditions. The NEU said that the DfE kept the report “under wraps” and that it was “telling” that the report did not feature in submissions to the pay review body.
The DfE published the first wave of its Working lives of teachers and leaders research yesterday, after parts of the report leaked last month.
Teachers’ workload dispute
Fourth teachers’ union rejects ‘contemptuous’ pay offer
The survey, which was conducted in Spring 2022, found that full-time teachers worked a 52-hour week on average, while school leaders typically worked 58 hours.
Nearly a quarter (23%) of full-time teachers and almost half (46%) of school leaders said they worked 60 or more hours.
Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of NEU, said: “It is disappointing but also telling that the DfE has kept the results of this survey under wraps for so long.
“It did not feature in their submission of evidence to the School Teachers’ Review Body as they consider pay for 2023-24. The inescapable conclusion for all who read it now, is that teacher workload is not only out of control but driving talented people out of the profession.
“A succession of education secretaries have expressed warm words about tackling workload, but in the same period they have failed to shift the dial. The government is far from finding a solution and this is having damaging effects on recruitment and retention. An above-inflation and fully-funded pay offer is one measure that would make a crucial difference, but the government is yet again reluctant to take the decisive steps necessary to tackle workload.”
Julie McCulloch, director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: “We have been pressing the government to release the findings of this important survey for months, and it is extremely disappointing that it has taken so long for them to do so … We do intend to refer to this survey in our oral evidence session with the STRB, as it lays bare the crisis facing the teaching profession and underscores the urgent need for funded pay increases as well as a systemic overhaul of workload and conditions of service.”
A quarter (25%) of teachers and leaders reported that they were considering leaving the state school sector in the next 12 months for reasons other than retirement.
The most commonly cited reasons for considering leaving were high workload (92%), government initiatives or policy changes (76%), and other pressures relating to pupil outcomes or inspection (69%).
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: “These findings are a damning indictment of government policies which have neglected schools for over a decade, and with them, the futures of our children. Anyone questioning why ourselves and other teaching unions are in dispute with the government only has to look at these survey results.”
Members of all four teaching unions in England have now rejected the government’s offer of a £1,000 lump sum payment for 2022-23 on top of the 5% rise received in September 2022, as well as a 4.3% rise for most teachers for 2023-24.
The NEU has announced two strike days in the coming weeks, with three more to come in June and July, while other unions are considering balloting their members.
A DfE spokesperson said: “We are listening to teachers about the issues that affect them, and we know that tackling workload is just as important as pay.
“Our discussions with the unions included many of the concerns raised in this report, and our teacher pay offer also put forward a commitment aiming to cut workload by five hours per week.
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“The teacher pay offer was funded, including major new investment of over half a billion pounds, and helps tackle issues teachers are facing like workload. NEU, NAHT, ASCL and NASUWT’s decisions to reject this offer will simply result in more disruption for children.”
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