The intensification of teachers' work and the role of changed public sector philosophy

Based on labour process theory proposing that work intensification is integral to the exploitation and subordination of labour, this study uses case-data from an Australian Primary School (APS) to analyse changes to teachers' work, work intensification and its causes. In particular, the study seeks to determine whether broader public sector management changes contribute to work intensification. The study contends that the adoption of business model approaches to public sector management have effected change in the education sector and influenced teachers' workloads and working hours. Using teachers' reports of extended working hours, work overload and perceptions of pressure and exploitation, the paper concludes that increasing 'managerialism' in the public sector helps to explain teachers' work intensification.