Acute shortage of teachers, lack of appreciation, overworked staff: “In my more than 40 years as a teacher in counseling sessions, until a year or two ago, I never saw anyone ask me what to do in order to quit.” says Josef Gary Fuchsbauer, Federal Coordinator of the Austrian Teachers Initiative – Independent Trade Union Members (ÖLI-UG) in conversation on krone.tv with Jana Pasching. It is normal for teachers to work more than 40 hours. Politicians must insist that education costs something.
The cliché that teachers have to work less because of their 22 or 24 hours of lessons is absolutely not true: “As a teacher, I can’t go home after school and then it’s done,” says Fuchsbauer. With Corona, the situation has become even worse: “Every student now has the contact details of the teacher and asks questions via email, WhatsApp and Co.” Many students would not understand if questions were not answered immediately. “The psychological stress doesn’t stop at the end of class.”
Minister of Education Martin Polaschek (ÖVP) launched a personnel campaign in the fall of 2022 under the title “Class job”. There is a lot of criticism of this, including from Fuchsbauer: “If people are overburdened, it means that you not only have to lure them into school with a ‘great job’, but also with suitable employment conditions. The most frustrating thing about the advertising rule is that the teachers who teach now wonder if this is actually a part-time job that they are doing.”
“Education must be worth something”
We have been waiting for the new, promised working time study for four years now. “We know that the burden is great, I think the minister knows that too,” said Fuchsbauer. Education costs money: “You can’t say that we leave the budget the same and that everything will get better anyway.” Politicians must decide that education is worth something. “You get the money back. In the form of fewer benefits and better educated people.”
You can see the entire interview with Josef Gary Fuchsbauer in the video above.
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Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
