The approval of thousands of applications for early retirement in the education sector has prompted the government to reconsider teachers' working conditions. The South African Union of Teachers (SAUT) warns that replacing experienced educators will not solve the issues undermining staff retention.
According to National Treasury data published in the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement, education has become the largest sector among approved applications under the Early Retirement Programme (ERP).
Although an application approval does not mean every applicant has left their post, SAUT Executive Director Paul Sauer stated that these figures should serve as a reason to closely examine the realities faced by educators.
A recent union needs assessment identified high workload, burnout, and administrative burden as the main difficulties among respondents, alongside staff shortages, student discipline issues, and pressure on school principals.
Sauer noted: 'The fact that 8,763 teacher applications were approved under the Early Retirement Programme is deeply concerning. We need to find out why so many teachers are choosing to leave the profession early, and what this tells us about the pressure they are under. These figures do not provide all the answers, but they should prompt us to seriously examine the realities in our schools.'
He emphasized that retaining teachers requires not only hiring new specialists but also improving working conditions and support.
For some educators, the decision to leave was the result of years of accumulated pressure; personal accounts demonstrate the toll it has taken on their health, family life, and ability to focus on students.
One former teacher who applied for early retirement shared: 'I didn't care how much I would get. I had nothing to give.' She decided not to return to school from October 2025 to January 2026 after submitting her application without knowing the exact pension amount.
She recounted feeling like she was just working to fill out and submit the form on time, and that the matter had ceased to be related to quality teaching and students' understanding of the material. She described a 10-week course that was supposed to be completed in six weeks. After leaving, she felt more at ease, although her monthly income was lower than expected.
A former principal of the Northern Cape also reported relief from school management demands. He stated: 'I am much more relaxed. As a former principal, the pressure is much less,' adding that the biggest change was the absence of needing to deal with 'meetings, emails, and circulars.'
Not all teachers retiring early completely leave the profession. One former teacher from the Northern Cape moved to a private school where, according to her, the work is better organized and student discipline is higher.
Burnout specialist Sandra de Wet-duit noted that pressure often accumulates over time, leaving teachers no opportunity to recover. In a survey she conducted using her '12 Stages of Burnout' model, 430 teachers across the country participated. The highest indicator was Stage 1, 'Need to prove competence.'
She explained that teachers often take on extra responsibilities and do more work than they can realistically handle because they strive to be reliable. They want to be the person colleagues can turn to, the one who always completes tasks, and the one everyone knows they can count on.
Factors contributing to burnout included high workload, administrative requirements, staff shortages, student behaviour, demanding parents, and insufficient institutional support.
The results of the OECD's TALIS 2024 study provide additional context. About 30% of primary school teachers in South Africa reported experiencing 'a lot' of work-related stress, compared to the OECD average of 19%.
Full-time primary school teachers in South Africa spent an average of 7.1 hours per week marking and correcting work, compared to the OECD average of 4.6 hours. They spent 4.9 hours on administrative tasks, exceeding the OECD average of three hours.
The Department of Basic Education acknowledged concerns about workload and workplace pressure but stated that there is no convincing evidence directly linking these difficulties to early retirement decisions. The Ministry noted: 'While the department acknowledges that these issues may affect teacher well-being and job satisfaction, there is currently no convincing evidence establishing a direct link between these factors and teachers' decisions to use the Early Retirement Programme.'
The Ministry reported that it is studying ways to reduce administrative burden, including a gradual transition from manual processes to technology-supported systems, and continues to promote access to psychosocial support programs.
