Secondary education staff more often suffer from burnout
More than a quarter of secondary education employees suffered from burnout complaints in 2021. That share is higher in secondary education than in other education or professional sectors, according to the labor market platform Voion, based on new figures. AOb- director Jelmer Evers: “The research shows again what we have been saying for years: the workload is too high.”
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from the youngest National Working Conditions Survey (NEA) by research agency TNO shows that 66 percent of secondary education employees want additional measures to curb the workload. Nearly three-quarters of the teachers want occupational health and safety rules to reduce the workload. Managers, on the other hand, think much less often (54,3 percent) that additional measures are needed.
Less teaching hours, smaller classes
AOb- driver Jelmer Evers wants concrete agreements in the new collective labor agreement, the union is also campaigning for this. “The survey once again shows what we have been saying for years: the workload is too high,” says the director. be full. If we free up sixty hours for the staff in the annual task, which is our wish, then that is a first step."
The annual task in secondary education is too large
In addition, the AOb reduce the number of lessons per week and reduce class sizes. "This is high on our list," says Evers. "And that is not a list for fun. It is a list to reduce the excessively high absenteeism and the enormous number of burnout complaints. This also reduces the teacher shortage. The list is therefore good for teachers, good for the students, good for the support staff: good for the entire education.”
Our wish list is good for teachers, good for students, good for support staff: good for education as a whole
Burn out
The research confirms that there are many burnout complaints in secondary education. Teachers in particular stand out: 29,2 percent of them suffered from it in 2021. Among their management colleagues and other staff, the share is much lower at 18,3 and 15,2 percent.
Work pressure and work stress, according to 47,2 percent of secondary education employees, were the main reasons for absenteeism from work. The TNO researchers see this reflected in the entire education sector. 'The share of employees who stated work pressure or work stress as the main reason for the occurrence of absenteeism complaints was greatest in ICT, financial services and education,' reports TNO. The researchers also mention education as the second sector in the Netherlands where the most overtime is worked, only in the care sector did employees work more overtime.
Empty
The figures also show that almost half of secondary education teachers (48,9 percent) feel 'empty' at the end of a working day. In primary education, 41,4 percent of teachers indicate this. In other sectors, one in three employees feels exhausted. The researchers also mention education and healthcare as sectors where employees more often than average indicate that the work is emotionally taxing.
Work less long
It is striking that in 2021, after an increase of two years, for the first time a decrease can be seen in the age up to which secondary education employees want to continue working as much as possible. According to Voion, teachers indicate that they are 'physically and mentally' unable to continue working until the age at which they would actually like to stop. For example, teachers would actually like to continue working until the age of 64,2, but they will have to stop at 63,6 or have to work less at a later age so that they can keep it up. Yet this age is higher than the average in the Netherlands: 62,3.
A plus is that employees in secondary education like their job and are satisfied. That indicates 82,7 percent.
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