Teachers' Concerns Over Workload to be Aired in Perth

The EIS AGM gets underway in Perth Concert Hall today. The EIS AGM is the sovereign decision making of the EIS, where 350 teachers and lecturers from across Scotland will debate Motions that will shape the priorities for the EIS and Scottish education in the year ahead.

59 Motions will be debated at this year's AGM, with concerns over growing excessive workload demands being placed on teachers likely to be a recurring theme in many debates.

As the AGM opens, the EIS has today published analysis drawn from a recent major survey of EIS members which confirms that excessive workload is placing significant strain on teachers in Scotland's schools.

The findings of the EIS survey, in which more than 12,000 teachers took part, indicate:

• 6 out of 10 full-time teachers work more than 8 hours extra above their contractual working hours each week
• 6 out of 10 part-time teachers work at least 5 extra hours per week – over half of these work more than 8 hours extra
• 1 in 4 teachers say that no time is factored in for assessment-related workload in their school Working Time Agreement
• 6 out of 10 teachers say that only some of their assessment-related workload is factored into their WTA
• Only 2% of teachers feel that all of their assessment-related workload is factored into their WTA.

Commenting, EIS General Secretary Larry Flanagan said, "Teachers across Scotland have serious concerns about the excessive workload demands that are being placed upon them. These concerns are common across all levels of school, at all grades of post and in all parts of the country."

"Teachers are working many additional hours over and above their contractual commitments, with serious impact on their family life and on their mental and physical wellbeing. The EIS welcomes the commitments to reduce workload that were written into the recent SNCT (Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers) agreement on teachers' pay – and we now expect local authorities and the Scottish Government to make quick progress in delivering those commitments."

"The results of our recent survey, together with the debates to be held at AGM over the next 3 days, serve as a stark warning of the need to lighten the excessive workload burden that continues to be placed upon Scotland's teachers. Addressing excessive workload is as important an issue as pay, if teaching is to be seen as an attractive career for highly qualified graduates."