Latest news

In August 2022, we published a Class Action article discussing the new code of practice for managing psychosocial hazards in the workplace – you can read that article here.

This article revisits psychosocial injuries in the school environment, specifically to help IEU members understand their work environment and how it can contribute to injuries if action is not taken by employers to identify, assess, control and review potential hazards.

Psychosocial hazards can cause psychological and physical harm. On average, work-related psychological injuries have longer recovery times, higher costs, and require more time away from work.

Managing the risks and heightened stress associated with psychosocial hazards not only protects workers, but it also decreases the disruption associated with staff turnover and absenteeism, and may improve broader organisational performance and productivity.

In their paper Understanding Australia’s teacher shortage: the importance of psychosocial working conditions to turnover intentions, Rahimi and Arnold discuss the critical teacher shortage associated with challenging working conditions in Australian schools. While their paper focussed on psychosocial hazards and the effects on teachers, we know that similar risks are present for support staff.

Heavy workloads and the emotionally demanding nature of teaching can be compounded by “organisational conditions, the culture of the organisation, interactions among individuals in a workplace, and the impact of an individual’s work on the employee health”.

“Considerable evidence suggests that the psychosocial work environment significantly affects the overall health of workers (Fernandes & Pereira, 2016; Stansfield & Candy, 2006). Factors in work design or management that increase the risk of work-related stress are termed psychosocial risks or hazards. The World Health Organisation lists key aspects of the psychosocial work environment, such as job content, workload, work pace, scheduling, control, equipment, organisational culture, interpersonal relationships, role clarity, career development, and the balance between work and home life (Leka & Jain, 2010).”

“Psychosocial working conditions play a significant role in shaping teachers’ career intentions and decisions to remain or leave the profession. These conditions encompass various aspects within the school environment that influence teachers’ health and wellbeing, job satisfaction, and overall experience in the profession. Evidence shows that positive psychosocial work conditions lead to better career outlooks and retention among teachers.”

Excessive, unrealistic and unsustainable workloads

“A primary reason that teachers planned to leave the profession was workload that was ‘excessive, unrealistic and unsustainable’. They reported that both the volume and diversity of tasks had grown, leading to unsustainable workloads.”

“Workload, work–family imbalance, and student misbehaviour were associated with emotional exhaustion that led to turnover intention. Understanding the extent of teachers’ work, including the number of hours, administrative tasks, and time spent on non-teaching activities, is crucial.”

Rahimi and Arnold quote several teachers:

• “The workload is insane. The student misbehaviour and the amount of time spent on planning, assessment and correction is overwhelming”.
• “General conditions are alright. But workload is absolutely ridiculous. There are constantly new initiatives to ‘raise’ student achievements, so teachers are just finding their feet, then something new comes along and it’s new learning all over again. There are increasing numbers of challenging children due to trauma, behaviour and learning needs. And it’s ever harder to get support for them.”
• “More flexibility with hours and family/personal commitments. Despite its reputation otherwise, teaching is not a family-friendly occupation.”

“These comments highlight the importance of emotional demands, sheer quantity of work (quantitative demands), and work–family conflict. Teachers expressed a desire for more manageable workloads, including a smaller quantity or amount of work tasks (quantitative demands), more support to cope with the emotionally demanding aspects of their work and a better work–life balance.”

IEU(SA) Organisers and Industrial Officers have assisted members with similar concerns.

How should your employer be managing your workplace for injury?

Safe Work Australia has developed a step-by-step process for managing psychological injury, intervening early, and for taking action to prevent workers becoming ill or sustaining a psychological injury. All these steps must be supported by consultation.

Step 1: Identify

Identify psychological hazards and risks by:

• talking and listening to your workers
• inspecting your workplace
• taking note of how your workers interact
• reviewing reports and records, and
• using a survey tool to gather information from staff.

Step 2: Assess

Consider what could happen if workers are exposed to the identified hazards and risks. Many hazards and their associated risks are well‑known but some may need to be identified through a formal assessment process.

Step 3: Control

Where possible, eliminate the risk. This is always the safest option, but if it isn’t possible, minimise the risk as much as possible through planning and prevention.

Step 4: Review

Maintain, monitor and review control measures when necessary. It is important to regularly review control measures to ensure they remain effective.

What should members do if they feel stressed in their workplace?

IEU members should always know that they have the support of their IEU Organiser and the IEU Industrial Team.

It is vital that members understand their employer may not always support them with the correct pathway to identifying their injury, reporting their injury or getting suitable medical assessment and a recovery plan.

If any members need assistance, even just to discuss their workplace situation, contact the IEU office on 8410 0122 or enquiries@ieusa.org.au and one of our officers will review and suggest assistance for your situation.

Early intervention is critical to your health and wellbeing and your ability to continue your career and ensure you enjoy a better work-life balance.

==

Source of quotes referenced or paraphrased:

Rahimi, M., Arnold, B. Understanding Australia’s teacher shortage: the importance of psychosocial working conditions to turnover intentions. Aust. Educ. Res. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-024-00720-5

Paraphrasing and excerpts used under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 – http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/doc/infographic-four-steps-preventing-psychological-injury-work