Member Benefits
How to Join
En Espanol
2017 Educator Quality of Life Survey
A survey of nearly 5,000 educators by the AFT and the Badass Teachers Association shows that nearly two-thirds of educators usually feel stressed out, twice the level felt by workers in the general population. Most surveyed feel demoralized and disrespected by state and federal officials, especially Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. By contrast, educators in two school districts that have forged strong collaboration among educators, administrators, parents and community reported less stress and were less likely to leave the profession than educators in the broader survey.
Highlights include:
- On amount of time feeling stressed: Nearly two-thirds, or 61 percent, of educators find work "always" or "often" stressful, twice the rate of other workers.
- On being bullied, harassed or threatened on the job: 27 percent of educators said they have been threatened, bullied or harassed, versus 7 percent of employed adults in the general population. When asked who was the bully, 35 percent identified a principal, administrator or supervisor, and 50 percent said it was a student.
- On respect: Educators felt most respected by their co-workers, students and students' parents—the people with whom they interact daily—and felt most disrespected by DeVos (86 percent), the media (61 percent) and state and federal elected officials (59 percent).
- On control and influence at work: Educators said they have at least a moderate level of control over basic decisions in their classroom, but they report having far less influence over policy decisions, such as establishing curriculum (nearly 40 percent), professional development content (nearly 50 percent) and budget decisions (nearly 80 percent).