Teachers - day off at the slightest sign of snow

pollypenny · 6 December 2012 at 6:11PM

zoominatorone wrote: »

My heart bleeds for them, over worked and underpaid for 185 days a year. No late nights, no night shifts. Poor, poor things.

No late night? I wish.

And how many people can engage 30 hormonal teenagers, who'd rather be on their x boxes or chatting up the opposite sex?

lazer · 6 December 2012 at 6:23PM

PinkLipgloss wrote: »

@Lazer

I really don't see the relationship between the parts of my post you highlighted and your conclusion that posts like mine cause teacher bashing!

I did not at any point claim, or even hint at, teachers working harder than other professions. Furthermore, teaching is indeed "a special case" because people do not assume that other professionals work short hours. However this presumption is often made about teachers simply because children attend 9-3.

A couple of years back I was tired of hearing people going on about this issue so I did some research of my own. The result of which was highly depressing. Given my ACTUAL working hours (i.e hours spent doing various paperwork, teaching, preparing resources, attending meetings, trainings etc) I was in fact earning significantly less than the minimum wage. Interesting given that actual teaching days are in fact around 195 per year!

Also (and I'll probably get flamed for this) I do believe there is a distinction to be made between primary and high school teachers. Friends of mine that are high school teachers actually laugh at the amount of work they see me doing and often tell me I should transfer to working in a high school (I do have relevant qualifications to be able to do this fairly easily, however I do not wish to teach teenagers).

If you are earning under the minimum take it to a tribunal although TBH I find this hard to believe, for this to be true (assuming minimum earnings of £22k) you would have to be working over 68 hours a week, every week including holidays.

Its the oooh pity me attitude of teachers that results in the bashing and that is the attitude you are putting across.

lazer · 6 December 2012 at 6:30PM

zagubov wrote: »

They did a government study called the McCrone Review on teachers' workload years ago in Scotland.

They concluded they were overworked and underpaid compared with other professionals and adjusted their workload and salaries to make them fairer. We're long overdue the same review in England.

The McCrone review was completed 12 years ago - there have been significant "improvements" in teaching conditions and wages since then in england as well

zagubov · 6 December 2012 at 6:38PM

zoominatorone wrote: »

My heart bleeds for them, over worked and underpaid for 185 days a year. No late nights, no night shifts. Poor, poor things.

Excellent post.

Yep, extend the terms, give us two months more work and two months more pay. The teaching years was only so short because families wanted to send their kids into the fields to work in the summer harvest.

Short holidays unlike the long ones we can't use cos our spouses don't have it.

Less childcare worries for working families in the summer.

Everybody going on holday the same two weeks of the year! Hope there's cheap holidays then.

zoominatorone · 6 December 2012 at 6:40PM

zagubov wrote: »

Excellent post.

Yep, extend the terms, give us two months more work and two months more pay.

Short holidays unlike the long ones we can't use cos our spouses don't have it.

Less childcare worries for working families in the summer.

Everybody going on holday the same two weeks of the year! Hope there's cheap holidays then.

You don't know how easy you teachers have it.

gregg1 · 6 December 2012 at 7:01PM

zoominatorone wrote: »

In the real world, we would be told off/sanctioned/verbally warned/sacked for not turning up to work because we didn't try to get into work in bad weather. Some teachers think they are some kind of special breed.

I don't really care whether kids want to be at home when it snows. Most parents want their kids at school learning something in the 180 days of the year they are actually there.

Jeez how many times before the message sinks in. It is not the teachers who are responsible for closing the school!!!!

I wonder how many of those parents who complain about their kids missing lessons because of the snow, take their kids out to go on holiday during term time? Wouldn't that make an interesting survey?!!

gregg1 · 6 December 2012 at 7:05PM

stephen77 wrote: »

quite a fewq companies if you do not turn up when it snows will either
A) ask you take it as a holiday ( i guess teacher not allowed holidya in school year)
dock a days pay(where i worked previously would pay if your turned up even if 1/2 a day as you made the effort)

If teacher lacked a day pay for not turning up, would they all be able to get in?

Not if the school is not open NO!!!!

Where I live the kids get coaches to the local secondary school. There only has to be a slight covering of snow for the coach company to cancel the coaches.

Interestingly, there is never any attempt by the parents of those kids to make the effort to get them to school themselves!

Storck · 6 December 2012 at 7:09PM

zoominatorone wrote: »

In the real world, we would be told off/sanctioned/verbally warned/sacked for not turning up to work because we didn't try to get into work in bad weather. Some teachers think they are some kind of special breed.

I don't really care whether kids want to be at home when it snows. Most parents want their kids at school learning something in the 180 days of the year they are actually there.

In the real world if you were told offed/sanctioned/verbally warned etc for not turning up cos you had childcare issue due to snow then they would be in the wrong. As they would be if they were asking you to risk your health and safety to get to work as they have a duty of care even for whilst you are going to work and going home.

If your employer disciplines you for it I would suggest it is your employer that is in the wrong and not the schools.

BTW I do not and have never worked in schools. I work in retail for a large supermarket chain.

Shushannah · 6 December 2012 at 7:09PM

I have just made tea and am sitting down to mark. I got in to work at 7am this morning and left at 4:30. I took a class at lunch, so had no lunch break. I am now starting to plan for tommorrow.
The holidays are good but I have to take them when I'm told. I have never seen my childs special assembly, my husband has to take time off if we have workmen coming to the house. I was given a hard time when I wanted three days off in term time when my father died. Our school only closes for snow when the buses cannot guarantee getting the pupils home. As for the OP my son at a private school had loads more snow days, probably due to where it was located.
I know most of you here all work 12 hour days on sub minimum wages with awful holidays. I have a suggestion: train to become a teacher as it is such an easy cushy job.

GRRRR.....having a bad week :-( Rant over.

Valli · 6 December 2012 at 7:12PM

davidlizard wrote: »

Sounds like the education authorities could sort this out, and a CRB check could be applicable to all local schools, then teachers would be able to turn up and assist, and prevent a school from having to close.

Given that it is a legal requirement then this will have to filter down from central Government.

At present EVEN IF an adult has a valid CRB check for another purpose then he/she still needs one for the school he/she is in.

So a teacher working two part time roles in two schools MUST have a CRB for each.

Or, if an adult is, say a scout leader but wishes to volunteer in a school then he/she must get ANOTHER CRB form.

Teachers - day off at the slightest sign of snow

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