Warning over unsustainable workload crisis

NASUWT - The Teachers' Union has today warned that industrial peace in Northern Ireland will depend on the full and urgent implementation of the Independent Panel on Workload's recommendations.

Delegates at the NASUWT's Annual Conference in Birmingham backed a motion calling for swift, fully resourced action from the Minister of Education and employers to tackle an unsustainable workload crisis.

The Union said the Panel's report exposes an education system propped up by the unpaid labour and goodwill of teachers, with devastating consequences for staff wellbeing, retention and the quality of education.

The Union said its findings remain as urgent and relevant as ever, with teachers continuing to report excessive hours, spiralling bureaucracy and unmanageable expectations.

Conference called on the National Executive to lobby the Education Minister to prioritise resources for implementation and to continue campaigning for:

• sustainable funding for education in Northern Ireland;
• pay restoration to 2010 levels in real terms;
• a formal, enforceable workload reduction agreement;
• protection and extension of teachers' non-contact time;
• a comprehensive teacher wellbeing and retention strategy;
• systematic reduction of unnecessary bureaucracy and data demands;
• immediate implementation of cost-neutral recommendations and transparent termly reporting;
• a fully funded long-term workforce planning strategy.

"Teachers in Northern Ireland are still working unsustainable hours, still sacrificing their health, and still carrying the weight of a system that depends on their unpaid labour.

"Every week we hear from teachers who are exhausted, overwhelmed and questioning whether they can stay in the profession.

"Teachers cannot continue to hold the system together through goodwill alone. Implementing these recommendations is about giving teachers their lives back.

"Industrial peace will only be possible when teachers see real, measurable change in their workload and working conditions."

Justin McCamphill, NASUWT National Official for Northern Ireland, said:

"Teachers in Northern Ireland have been living with the consequences of excessive workload for far too long. The Panel's report laid bare the reality for many teachers who are working 60-hour weeks, giving them no time to spend with their families. It is pushing too many talented teachers to breaking point.

"Since the report was published, nothing about teachers' daily experience has improved. They are drowning in bureaucracy, still covering for systemic underfunding, and expected to do more with less.

"This is not sustainable. Teachers deserve a working life where they can plan, teach and support pupils without sacrificing their own wellbeing. Implementing the recommendations is the minimum required to stabilise the workforce and protect the future of education.

"We need urgency, transparency and accountability. Teachers will not accept another cycle of promises without delivery."