Why does no one acknowledge how overworked teachers are?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

This sounds like the life of many professionals who sit in meetings all day.

But are they really all day? Do you have to prep for and lead these meetings, or just sit in them? Can you multitask during them?

These are the distinctions that I think makes teaching quite different. Teaching is the equivalent of leading 6+ hours of meetings 5 days a week.

I have to prep for meetings, then lead the meetings, following up by summarizing the meetings. I generally have 6 hours of meeting a day. I also have to write reports that require analysis, and those reports are discussed in meetings.

I don't have a very special or odd job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Yes, the comparison is frequently made between nurses and teachers but this is a huge difference. Pay is usually similar but nurses work on the clock only.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

This sounds like the life of many professionals who sit in meetings all day.

But are they really all day? Do you have to prep for and lead these meetings, or just sit in them? Can you multitask during them?

These are the distinctions that I think makes teaching quite different. Teaching is the equivalent of leading 6+ hours of meetings 5 days a week.

I have to prep for meetings, then lead the meetings, following up by summarizing the meetings. I generally have 6 hours of meeting a day. I also have to write reports that require analysis, and those reports are discussed in meetings.

I don't have a very special or odd job.

And your salary is comparable to a teacher's? People who are making double or triple a teacher's salary and saying that they have similar levels of work are just proving the point that teachers are completely underpaid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

It's not the only job where that is true. I am a Fed at that is true.

Fair enough.

Teacher here, and curious…
What sort of work do you do at home? What “work before you get to work” does your job require? We know that in the context of teaching that is grading (so work can be returned/discussed) and planning lessons. That’s my Sunday-Thursday nights.


No snark intended at all. I’m just curious what this looks like for other professions.

I'm a fed responsible for multiple written products every week. I end up having to do these at home in the evenings, every night, because it's the only time I can concentrate without constant interruptions. In addition to regular meetings, there are urgent meetings that pop up, preparation for higher levels' urgent meetings that pop up, constant deliberation and strategizing about the best bureaucratic maneuvering to accomplish our tasks. I am a supervisor so also responsible for teaching and training a team, ensuring they do their work and that the work is distributed fairly, managing leave requests and any personal issues. So I use my nights and weekends to concentrate on writing. It's exhausting but I like my coworkers and I could not handle working with kids.

- GS-15 ($180k salary)

Do you know there are SPED teachers with their masters making barely making 80,000...problematic.

I get it, teachers feel underpaid for the work they do. But really, if you want more money, go ahead and get a job with more money. Teachers on DCUM say all the time how they could make so much more.

I too have had very low-paid nonprofit jobs that required long hours and emotional drain. I did those jobs because they were fulfilling for me. I thought of the fulfillment as part of my pay. I then went to graduate school, starved and worked long hours for many years, and now make more money. I'm not rolling in cash, but I've got a fulfilling job that also allows me to live fairly well. But I still work 60+ hours a week.

The problem is the system. It isn't going to be solved sitting here in individual comparisons of who gets what for what labor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

This sounds like the life of many professionals who sit in meetings all day.

But are they really all day? Do you have to prep for and lead these meetings, or just sit in them? Can you multitask during them?

These are the distinctions that I think makes teaching quite different. Teaching is the equivalent of leading 6+ hours of meetings 5 days a week.

I have to prep for meetings, then lead the meetings, following up by summarizing the meetings. I generally have 6 hours of meeting a day. I also have to write reports that require analysis, and those reports are discussed in meetings.

I don't have a very special or odd job.

And your salary is comparable to a teacher's? People who are making double or triple a teacher's salary and saying that they have similar levels of work are just proving the point that teachers are completely underpaid.

The original quote wasn't about pay, it was about working before and after working. And that only teachers do that. That's just not accurate, as several here have attested.

Whether teachers are paid commensurate with the features of their job is another question.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

This sounds like the life of many professionals who sit in meetings all day.

But are they really all day? Do you have to prep for and lead these meetings, or just sit in them? Can you multitask during them?

These are the distinctions that I think makes teaching quite different. Teaching is the equivalent of leading 6+ hours of meetings 5 days a week.

I have to prep for meetings, then lead the meetings, following up by summarizing the meetings. I generally have 6 hours of meeting a day. I also have to write reports that require analysis, and those reports are discussed in meetings.

I don't have a very special or odd job.

And your salary is comparable to a teacher's? People who are making double or triple a teacher's salary and saying that they have similar levels of work are just proving the point that teachers are completely underpaid.

eh, plenty of teachers in DC are making more than I do. I'm the PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

Don't you get holiday pay? My mom was a nurse and always volunteered to work holidays because she got holiday pay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

It's not the only job where that is true. I am a Fed at that is true.

Fair enough.

Teacher here, and curious…
What sort of work do you do at home? What “work before you get to work” does your job require? We know that in the context of teaching that is grading (so work can be returned/discussed) and planning lessons. That’s my Sunday-Thursday nights.


No snark intended at all. I’m just curious what this looks like for other professions.

I'm a fed responsible for multiple written products every week. I end up having to do these at home in the evenings, every night, because it's the only time I can concentrate without constant interruptions. In addition to regular meetings, there are urgent meetings that pop up, preparation for higher levels' urgent meetings that pop up, constant deliberation and strategizing about the best bureaucratic maneuvering to accomplish our tasks. I am a supervisor so also responsible for teaching and training a team, ensuring they do their work and that the work is distributed fairly, managing leave requests and any personal issues. So I use my nights and weekends to concentrate on writing. It's exhausting but I like my coworkers and I could not handle working with kids.

- GS-15 ($180k salary)

Do you know there are SPED teachers with their masters making barely making 80,000...problematic.

I get it, teachers feel underpaid for the work they do. But really, if you want more money, go ahead and get a job with more money. Teachers on DCUM say all the time how they could make so much more.

I too have had very low-paid nonprofit jobs that required long hours and emotional drain. I did those jobs because they were fulfilling for me. I thought of the fulfillment as part of my pay. I then went to graduate school, starved and worked long hours for many years, and now make more money. I'm not rolling in cash, but I've got a fulfilling job that also allows me to live fairly well. But I still work 60+ hours a week.

The problem is the system. It isn't going to be solved sitting here in individual comparisons of who gets what for what labor.

This is exactly what they are doing. Add in teachers retiring and kids saying no thanks to going into the profession and we've got the perfect storm in schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

+1 you're really not going to convince anyone that nurses have it easier. For a lot of reasons that should be obvious.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

Don't you get holiday pay? My mom was a nurse and always volunteered to work holidays because she got holiday pay.

NP Well bully for your mom! My mom would have liked to have been there on Christmas morning with us. We had no local family so every other year was rough. It was just my dad and I. Holiday pay isn't that great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This was on my FaceBook feed a couple of weeks ago:

“I think teaching is the only job in which you have to work before you get to work so you have work to do at work. Then you have no time to do work at work, so you have to work after work to catch up on all the work you didn’t do while at work.”

Sums it up quite well for me.

It's not the only job where that is true. I am a Fed at that is true.

Fair enough.

Teacher here, and curious…
What sort of work do you do at home? What “work before you get to work” does your job require? We know that in the context of teaching that is grading (so work can be returned/discussed) and planning lessons. That’s my Sunday-Thursday nights.


No snark intended at all. I’m just curious what this looks like for other professions.

I'm a fed responsible for multiple written products every week. I end up having to do these at home in the evenings, every night, because it's the only time I can concentrate without constant interruptions. In addition to regular meetings, there are urgent meetings that pop up, preparation for higher levels' urgent meetings that pop up, constant deliberation and strategizing about the best bureaucratic maneuvering to accomplish our tasks. I am a supervisor so also responsible for teaching and training a team, ensuring they do their work and that the work is distributed fairly, managing leave requests and any personal issues. So I use my nights and weekends to concentrate on writing. It's exhausting but I like my coworkers and I could not handle working with kids.

- GS-15 ($180k salary)

Do you know there are SPED teachers with their masters making barely making 80,000...problematic.

I get it, teachers feel underpaid for the work they do. But really, if you want more money, go ahead and get a job with more money. Teachers on DCUM say all the time how they could make so much more.

I too have had very low-paid nonprofit jobs that required long hours and emotional drain. I did those jobs because they were fulfilling for me. I thought of the fulfillment as part of my pay. I then went to graduate school, starved and worked long hours for many years, and now make more money. I'm not rolling in cash, but I've got a fulfilling job that also allows me to live fairly well. But I still work 60+ hours a week.

The problem is the system. It isn't going to be solved sitting here in individual comparisons of who gets what for what labor.

This is exactly what they are doing. Add in teachers retiring and kids saying no thanks to going into the profession and we've got the perfect storm in schools.

We know. I think that's to be expected given how they feel. But comparing themselves to everyone else they talk to on this board won't raise their pay or change anything, really.

Look, I think people should find other jobs if they don't like the ones they have. Sometimes that will lead to a system breaking down. Sometimes it won't. Hell, there are plenty of teachers on DCUM saying the system is broken anyway. Maybe it needs to be broken fully.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

+1 you're really not going to convince anyone that nurses have it easier. For a lot of reasons that should be obvious.

+2

Playing the suffering olympics versus nurses is not a good look for teachers.

Why not just tell us how your job is harder than those at meat-packing facilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are overworked.

Nurses don't take work home, nor are they expected to.

Nursing has a ratio problem, so yes they're "overworked" while on the clock, but they can home home without having to have patient meetings and paperwork on their own time.

Nurses and other medical professionals have to work holidays. I have missed either Thanksgiving or Christmas with my family every year of my adult life. Teachers don't have that problem.

+1 you're really not going to convince anyone that nurses have it easier. For a lot of reasons that should be obvious.

+2

Playing the suffering olympics versus nurses is not a good look for teachers.

Why not just tell us how your job is harder than those at meat-packing facilities.

You’re comparing apples to oranges there. Teachers have a 4 yr degree as a minimum. Many workers in meat packing aren’t even legal in this country. Not comparable. Teachers and nurses are similar in terms of education. Both professions have shortages but nobody wants to listen to those doing the job as to why they are leaving. In many cases, it’s an easy, cheap fix.