Teacher morale has been “seriously damaged” by mounting workload and cuts to pay and funding, research in Scotland shows.
Just half of teachers in Scotland say they feel satisfied with their job, with a third saying they would choose a different career if they could make the choice again, according to a report published today by the NASUWT teaching union.
The research, carried out for the union by the University of Stirling, finds that the pressures of excessive workload, cuts to pay and funding and attacks on working conditions are impacting on teachers’ morale and ability to provide the highest levels of education to students.
The survey, which attracted 1,395 responses from teachers across Scotland, found clear concerns about excessive workload. Previous research by the EIS union - which is spearheading a campaign to secure a 10 per cent pay rise for all teachers - has identified similar concerns, and the prospect of the first national teacher-led strike since the 1980s remains alive.
Nearly two-thirds of teachers in the NASUWT survey reported taking work home three times or more a week, and 58 per cent said they had after-school meetings almost every week. Over half reported a teacher shortage in their subject area at their school, with 83 per cent saying this had impacted on their workload.
Four out of five teachers said that cuts in education spending in Scotland had impacted on their own workload.
Nearly three-quarters said the time they spent on administrative and clerical tasks had been affected by the removal of guidance for schools setting out a list of administrative tasks teachers should not be routinely asked to undertake.
‘Excessive’ workload
Some 65 per cent said the cuts and freezes to public sector pay had significantly impacted on them.
NASUWT general secretary Chris Keates said that “teachers’ morale and professionalism is being seriously damaged by the failure to value the profession and take tangible and effective action to tackle the excessive workload and cuts to pay which are driving teachers away from the profession”.
She added: “The year-on-year decline in teachers’ pay and working conditions since 2010 has spawned a growing teacher recruitment and retention crisis. This will only continue to deepen without urgent action to address uncompetitive pay levels and excessive workload.”
Jane Peckham, NASUWT national official for Scotland, said: “It is clear from the research that teachers do not feel valued by employers and decision-makers in Scotland and that their morale and job satisfaction is being eroded by the impact of cuts to their pay, working conditions and funding for education.”
She added: “Teachers help provide the foundations for future generations of children and young people to achieve and for the country to prosper, but as teaching becomes an increasingly unattractive and unsustainable career for increasing numbers of existing and prospective teachers, this vital work is being put at risk. Ministers, employers and schools must take heed and act now.”
A Scottish government spokesman said: “We have undertaken a range of actions to ensure a reduction in teacher workload, acting to clarify and simplify the curriculum framework and to remove unnecessary bureaucracy. We are putting in place new career pathways to provide opportunities for teachers to diversify their career and support high-quality teaching and learning while helping to deliver improved outcome for pupils.
“Teachers’ pay is a matter for the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers and negotiations for 2018-19 are now underway. NASUWT members are represented in those negotiations through the Teachers’ Panel and we are committed to playing our part in these negotiations.”
He added: “It should be noted this government was the first in the UK to commit to lift the 1 per cent public sector pay cap, and the teachers’ pay deal for 2017-18 reflects this commitment.”
