I've posted in this sub about my awful experiences as a middle school teacher (a list I could add to endlessly), but I had no idea how bad it could really get…
I was in a helicopter accident earlier this year. I don't want to include a ton of details, as it would make me extremely easy to identify, but the short version is this: a mechanical malfunction caused our pilot to clip a tree and crash, killing several of the passengers instantly. My father was one of them. By some miracle, I pulled myself out of the wreckage with no visible injuries and was released from the hospital that afternoon.
The texts from work came almost immediately after. No concern for my safety or mental health, or the fact that I was about to have to bury my father and figure out how to care for my widowed mother, just a callous message from the school administration: “When are you coming back?”
And as infuriating as this was, I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe they were just trying to figure out how long they'd need a sub for my room so my students would be taken care of. I get that. So I called HR to see how much time I could realistically get off to arrange funeral plans and piece my life back together.
And I wish I was joking about this next part… to my open-mouthed horror, I was informed by the district that bereavement leave was only offered for “real emergencies.” Therefore, my PTO hours would be used for any time I hoped to take off (maybe 2 days worth), after which I would simply go unpaid. I angrily asked the HR rep to explain that if a traumatic helicopter crash resulting in the death of my father wasn't a “real emergency,” what was? To which she replied, and I quote: “Not that.”
I know I could've called my union rep. I know I could've fought to get paid leave. But I didn't care anymore. My students, who I still love dearly to this day, were the only reason I'd stayed in that hellish district so long – and not even they were a good enough excuse anymore. I ignored the administrations texts for two weeks to squeeze the last bit of pay I could out of the district, then quit.
God save anyone who works in public education. I'll never go back.