Nearly half of teachers feel their workload is unmanageable most or all of the time, a survey suggests. The majority of teachers said increased funding to pay for more staff (88%), a less punitive inspection system (79%) and smaller class sizes (73%) would have a “big positive impact” on their workload in the coming year.
A poll of more than 17,800 National Education Union (NEU) members in England and Wales found that 35% of teachers viewed their workload as unmanageable most of the time and 13% said they felt this all of the time. It also found that more than a third (37%) of teachers, and around a fifth (21%) of support staff, said they feel stressed at work 80% or more of the time.
An additional 31% of teachers surveyed, and a further quarter (25%) of support staff, said this is the case 60% to 79% of the time. The survey findings were released ahead of the NEU’s annual conference in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, on Monday, where the result of the union’s ballot of members on the Government’s pay offer is set to be announced.
