Teaching in public schools: illness and the search for quality of life amidst precarious working conditions

Abstract

Teaching work in Brazilian public schools, shaped by the dynamics of contemporary capitalism, has been marked by processes of intensification, flexibilization, and precariousness that directly impact teachers’ working conditions and health. This study aims to understand the multiple factors that contribute to teachers’ ill health in this context, as well as to reflect on possible ways to address these issues. It is grounded in the framework of dialectical historical materialism, drawing on contributions by Antunes (2009; 2014) regarding the metamorphoses of labor, in dialogue with Lacaz (1997) and Seligmann-Silva (2011) on worker health, and with Saviani (2015) and Freitas (2005) in the field of education. Methodologically, this is a qualitative study of bibliographic and documentary nature. The analysis shows that teacher illness is not limited to individual factors but reflects the contradictions inherent in the organization of work under the logic of capital, manifesting itself in the intensification of work, the expansion of control mechanisms, and professional devaluation, especially with the incorporation of new forms of school management. Such conditions contribute to teachers’ physical and mental health problems, affecting their professional performance and the teaching and learning processes. It follows that there is an urgent need to develop and strengthen public policies aimed at promoting mental health, quality of life at work (QLW), and the enhancement of the teaching profession.