Relevance and community support teachers' well-being at work
OAJ, the teachers' trade union, uses Vibemetrics to carry out an interactive measurement of its members' well-being at work. The measurement has already generated over 100 000 reactions and 27 000 comments on selected topics. This is the first time that the well-being of a single professional group has been measured through digital participation.
According to a recent survey, teachers' everyday lives are meaningful, but a sense of inadequacy and fragmentation of time are threats to their well-being. Much time is also spent on non-instructional activities, which was seen as a negative factor for well-being. Interaction and the experience of community, on the other hand, played an important role in well-being and well-being at work.
98% of teachers know the purpose of their job
Relevance and a sense of community are strong drivers of well-being at work. More than 80% of teachers consider their work inspiring or somewhat inspiring. The responses suggest that teachers like the content of their work, as long as they can concentrate on the teaching itself. Job satisfaction and well-being were influenced by the experience of having enough working time; 20% of teachers felt that they did not have enough resources to carry out their work, and in particular they wished for more time to be allocated to planning teaching and learning.
The OAJ monitors the wellbeing of educators nationwide using Vibemetrics' platform for measuring and analysing wellbeing at work. More than 8,000 members are already involved and the number is growing all the time. The service has already received over 100 000 reactions and 27 000 comments on well-being at work.
"The aim is to listen to members and find concrete ways to improve well-being at work. It's important that everyone has the opportunity to contribute and that the results are real-time."
Interaction plays a major role in well-being at work
"The responses highlighted that open interaction has a very strong impact on the experience of community and meaningfulness," says Vibemetrics' Anni Saarinen.
It is no longer enough to listen to a lecture or answer a questionnaire once a year. Well-being at work must be supported in the midst of everyday life and be based on open and confidential interaction. "It's all about being concrete and sharing experiences; a solution implemented by another teacher can be invaluable. Spreading good ideas is important at both individual and organisational level," says Sari Melkko, the OAJ's labour market advocate responsible for the service.
Teachers' well-being at work has a significant social impact
"It's great to be involved in a project that has a huge impact not only on the wellbeing of teachers - but also on the wellbeing of pupils. Many companies have moved away from surveys to a digital, interactive model where the discussion and results are open to all in real time. The OAJ is leading the way in the organisational field by offering its members the same opportunity," says Mikko Ruokojoki of Vibemetrics.
The OAJ aims to promote well-being at work by giving its members the opportunity to be heard and to have an impact. In the 2019-2020 academic year, the OAJ will highlight a range of issues affecting well-being at work and provide concrete tools to improve it.
OAJ AND VIBEMETRICS THEMATIC SURVEY ON WELL-BEING AT WORK
More than 8 000 active OAJ members have already participated in the survey, which started in early August 2019, and the number is growing all the time. The response rate is 92%.
The respondents are OAJ members working in education, training and research.
This is the first time that the well-being of a single occupational group has been monitored to this extent.
The results and development ideas are available to the whole sector in real time. You can participate anonymously and when it suits you best.
Contact details:
Sari Melkko, Labour Market Ombudsman, OAJ
020 748 9553
sari.melkko@oaj.fi
Mikko Ruokojoki, CEO, Vibemetrics
0400 709319
mikko.ruokojoki@vibemetrics.com
OAJ, the Education Sector Trade Union is the world's only trade union organisation that oversees the interests of professionals in the education, training and research sectors, from early childhood education to adult education. The OAJ brings together education, training and research professionals across education sectors and has a membership of nearly 120 000. oaj.fi
Vibemetrics is a digital platform focused on the employee experience, providing employees and management with an open, real-time and confidential dialogue. The service allows for the agile collection of information about current moods and the reasons behind them, or experiences and development ideas around a desired theme, such as values, strategy or change implementation. We help improve employee experience, productivity and identify critical business and well-being factors in real time at team, unit and organisational level.
