Money not my God either, I can assure you, Cryrst.

I work as a lecturer in an FE college and have had to watch as more and more staff get trimmed, pushing the workload onto the remaining staff.

The level of stress in the job is immense as we are teaching the students who didn't make it to uni, are more kinaesthetically minded. In my subject, English, there are those who just don't want to do it and many will refuse, try to be disruptive and even violent in the process: all part of the job.

Control in the classroom is a challenge, I can assure you again.

As a lecturer, I trained in order to be able to teach: it's a highly - specialised profession yet many lecturers are now employed on a 'sessional' basis ie zero-hours contracts so they're only paid for their time in front of students. All the other, vital, work like prep, marking etc is not paid. That's being employed, essentially, on a casual basis, without the benefits of salaried staff.

Now, there are those who say (maybe you are one of them) 'well, you don't go into teaching for the money' and that is true-to a certain extent.

I'm afraid, though, that we've reached the point where it seems that the piss is being taken.

We carry out an very valuable role in teaching young adults as they prepare for the world of work. The College says they cannot give us more money because 'We are a business and would go into debt'. A business. Yet their funding comes, to a great extent, from the state and that funding has got less and less in real terms over the years and that means the colleges themselves are between a rock and a hard place.

Meanwhile, many of the students I teach have parents who do, indeed, go out and seek other jobs. Some have two or three but are still unable to cope financially; I really feel for them, working their butts off like honest citizens but finding themselves in the state they're in.

Yet, for all that, I don't despise other workers for taking industrial action. Wages in this country are being driven down further and further and I don't think that's fair. It's not like the workforce over the last 10 years has been militant; far from it. I think they've been very patient.

Most worrying is that, before long, young people who are the future of teaching will be saying: "Nah, what's the point of doing that as a profession? I'll find another job to look for", as you suggest, and the young students of this country, the country's future, in essence, are the ones that are affected.

Edited by Glazier#1 (01 Sep 2022 10.44am)

Oh, I see.

Cheers.

I don't have a choice, me. Can't sleep at night, thinking about my job.

Rubber hammer needed.

Or liquid cosh. lol.

Further education

Those that are at FE are there actually studying trades like bricklaying, chippies, sparks, hairdressing catering you name, in order to get trade quals. While they're doing that, they are required to study English and Maths to a certain standard. (Employers have asked for this) so these numeracy and literacy classes run alongside their main courses.

Many do go on to apprenticeships from college, as it happens. They're not the same as the traditional ones that we might know - full three year ones and some might argue that some employers treat them as cheap labour but, whatever, they are there.

Edited by Glazier#1 (01 Sep 2022 12.32pm)

When I first started work my new colleague didn't like my attitude (I worked hard) she tried to being me down to her lazy level constantly criticising me and the management. I ignored her and eventually they got rid.

In theory I am all in favour of a work life balance but I suspect this trend will just attract people who are lazy. Of course you should not be answering emails on the beach but if you are not prepared to show some get up and go others will, if not in this country then elsewhere.

Already we have unions promoting WFH and yet they don't seem to understand that if you can do the job 30 miles from work then someone else can do it 3000 miles from work.

Careful what you wish for as they say.

One more point