Carers First, Workers Second: What Graduates in Non‐Graduate School Support Jobs Reveal About Gender, Occupational Choice and Work‐Life Balance

This article proposes the care‐giving worker model as the inversion of the “care‐free” worker model in educational and professional work. The care‐giving worker model offers a sociological understanding of how para‐professional jobs may accommodate care‐giving responsibilities both within and outside of work, typically at the expense of occupational status and reward. Rather than representing an alternative route for occupational upgrading—as promoted by policymakers concerned about teacher recruitment—these positions offer an escape from professional/managerial careers which are seen as antithetical to wellbeing. Based on accounts from 26 women and one man who are graduates working in paraprofessional school support positions in England, we show that most participants positioned themselves as carers first and workers second. Many had actively opted out of “care‐free” roles within education and the private sector which they saw as offering no compromise between home and work. This constrained choice arose from a perceived duty to family responsibilities and/or to a feeling that support posts, such as teaching assistant, were a refuge for meaningful educational work. Such a choice meant accepting lower pay and little opportunity for advancement, usually in favor of a partner's career. Our findings suggest that reforms to address managerialism and performativity in teaching could be effective for improving teacher recruitment and teacher and pupil wellbeing.