Australian teachers are working some of the longest weeks in the developed world, and it’s not because they’re spending more time in front of students.
Fresh OECD data shows lower-secondary teachers in Australia now clock an average 46.4 hours a week, putting them behind only Japan and New Zealand – a full five hours longer than the OECD average.
An analysis of the data, published in an education policy brief by Save Our Schools, shows that Australian teachers are delivering fewer hours of classroom teaching than the international average. However, it is the additional duties that significantly extend their working week.
Almost 60% of a teacher’s schedule is absorbed by planning, marking, reporting, compliance requirements and internal administrative tasks. Paperwork alone accounts for 4.7 hours a week – the fourth highest figure in the OECD. In comparison, teachers in Finland, often cited as a high-performing system, spend just 1.5 hours on the same tasks.
Half of Australia’s teachers say marking is a major source of stress, with pressure peaking in Term 1 during extensive NAPLAN preparation. More than two-thirds report that administrative duties now pose a serious wellbeing concern.
The result is burnout, rising resignations and a shrinking workforce.
A recent Productivity Commission review found workload to be the single greatest factor driving teachers out of the profession. The federal government’s National Teacher Workforce Action Plan was intended to address this, but critics argue it relies heavily on pilot programs rather than structural reform.
State governments have begun introducing measures – such as additional administrative staff in NSW, operational assistants in Victoria and red tape reduction initiatives in Queensland – but none tackle the underlying issue: the steady accumulation of policy and compliance demands that rarely diminish over time.
A 2024 NSW audit identified 201 active department policies and more than 100 tasks described as “frustrating, painful or overly complex”. Victoria’s review found teachers spend eight hours per week on compliance activities, with 77% reporting the workload has increased.
Researchers warn that trimming “an hour here or there” is insufficient. The core problem is not only the volume of work, but the cognitive burden of constantly shifting between teaching, data entry, student wellbeing, curriculum planning and parental communication.
“Simply employing more administrative staff in schools to cope with the demands of central and regional offices diverts more funding away from directly supporting students,” Trevor Cobbold, Save Our Schools’ national convenor, said.
“Employing more allied professionals to support student well-being would contribute to reducing time spent on reporting and compliance as would streamlined central and regional office demands on teachers.”
Other experts warn that without proper school resourcing – including more teachers, specialist staff and allied professionals – workloads will remain unsustainable and learning outcomes will suffer.
The federal government’s own expert panel stated: “Reducing additional burdens on teachers is essential to attracting and retaining the skilled and passionate teachers we have.”
Cobbold said the TALIS 2024 report adds to the “mountain of evidence” on the heavy workload and associated stress endured by Australian teachers.
“Much more than the existing programs is needed by governments to reduce the workload. The heavy workload is a major factor in attrition from the profession and the difficulty in attracting new entrants,” he said.
“The learning and wellbeing of students is at stake. Fully funding public schools to employ more teachers and allied professionals is fundamental to reducing the workload.”