Are teachers paid enough? Let’s do the sums

Teachers might appear relatively well paid but long hours mean they are earning less than those in other careers

4th May 2021, 1:16pm

How Does Teachers' Pay Compare With Other Professions?

What is your time worth as a teacher? I find this quite a difficult question.

A random scroll one evening led me to a job advert for a teacher paid at an hourly rate of just over £12 an hour.

My gut reaction was that this was too low. Earlier on, a grumpy colleague made reference to the “the 1,265 hours we are paid for”.

Scotland ‘has best-funded schools system in the UK’

Pay guide: teacher pay scales

Assuming that the colleague is at the higher end of the salary scale, and that they really do only work those hours - roughly 32.5 hours for 39 weeks - their hourly rate comes out at over £30 an hour. This seems quite good.

But it’s not that straightforward. The reality is that the vast majority of teachers work significantly above this figure: 56 hours a week was the average in one recent survey. So this would mean 2,180 hours a year (assuming they do absolutely no holiday work).

By way of comparison, an average worker in a standard non-teaching job would work around 1,800 hours a year, assuming office hours (37.5 hours x 48 weeks).

Teacher pay: three hypothetical colleagues

Teacher A is an experienced middle leader and earns £45,000 a year. If they stick to the 1,265 hours, their hourly pay is £35.57 per hour. If they work a 56-hour week, then this drops to £20.64 an hour.

Teacher B has been teaching for around five years (so is part of the 60 per cent that survive their first five years) and earns £35,000 a year. If they stick to the 1,265 hours, their hourly pay is £27.66 per hour. If they work a 56-hour week, then this drops to £16.05 an hour.

Teacher C has qualified this year and is an NQT earning £25,000 a year. If they stick to the 1,265 hours, their hourly pay is £19.76 per hour. If they work a 56-hour week, then this drops to £11.46 an hour.

How does this compare?

It is very easy at this point to get drawn into “whataboutery”. I am well aware that if you are earning minimum wage, doing an unpleasant or repetitive job, then these sums of money sound generous.

There are many people who are worse off than teachers, although, given that the UK average salary is £30,800, there will be actually many teachers under this average figure. The hourly rate for our average non-teacher (assuming the above 1,800 hours) would then come in at £17.11 per hour

It seems right that we expect teaching to be at least reasonably well paid, as it is a highly skilled job. So consider the following hourly rates that skilled persons may charge.

This is what you would have to pay for the following skills:

£15-20 per hour for a handyman
At least £40 per hour for a plumber
At least £50 per hour (if not more) for a garage mechanic
£100 per hour plus if you require a solicitor or a private medical consultant

Consider also the following hourly rates we may get in any second jobs we do:

For exam board work, such as attending meetings, £15 to £20 per hour is generally the going rate for our expertise. In cases where we are not paid by the board but our school or college is paid to release us, then a daily rate of around £180 for a six- or seven-hour teaching day is standard.
If we offer our services as private tutors, the going hourly rate seems to be at least £25 to £30 per hour. In fact, some of those who have left teaching have discovered this is a lucrative alternative.

So how does a teacher’s hourly rate compare with other professions? What would be a comparable profession in terms of skill? Should teachers be paid more? Should they work fewer hours than they do?

Perhaps we cannot put a price on what teachers do. But financially, what should it be worth? I’m not sure I know the answers but I think the questions are interesting and important. What do you think?

Chris Eyre is a senior examiner