「残業代を英語で言うと？」～公立校教員に残業代支給を検討：定額廃止案、勤務時間を反映～
教育現場の給与制度を表す英語表現には、興味深い特徴がある。現在注目を集めている「教職調整額」は英語では「teaching adjustment allowance」と呼ばれ、通常の残業代（overtime pay）の代替として機能してきた▼この制度は1972年に導入され、月給の4%を一律支給する形で50年以上続いてきた。当時は月8時間程度の残業を想定していたが、現実との乖離が問題視されている▼現在、小学校教員の64.5%、中学校教員の77.1%が月45時間の上限を超える残業をしているという深刻な実態がある。この状況を改善するため、政府は固定額支給の教職調整額を廃止し、実際の残業時間に応じた手当支給への移行を検討している▼米国では「time and a half」（1.5倍賃金）という表現が一般的で、週40時間を超える労働に対して基本給の1.5倍を支払うことが法律で定められている。一方、日本の教職員は長時間労働の実態があるにもかかわらず、実働時間に応じた「overtime pay」を受け取れない状況が続いてきた▼教育現場では、勤務時間の正確な把握が困難という課題もある。教員の業務には、授業準備や部活動指導など、明確な時間管理になじまない創造的な活動が多く含まれているためだ。このような特殊性も、一律の調整額が長年維持されてきた背景にある▼教育の質を維持しながら、教員の働き方改革を進めることは喫緊の課題だ。overtime payの在り方を見直すことは、その重要な一歩となるだろう。
【英語訳】
Overtime Pay for Public School Teachers: Government Considers Reform – Replacing Fixed Allowance with Hours-Based Compensation
The English terminology used in educational compensation systems has some interesting characteristics. The currently discussed “teaching adjustment allowance” has functioned as an alternative to regular overtime pay in Japan’s education sector.
This system, introduced in 1972, has provided a uniform 4% monthly salary supplement for over 50 years. While it was originally designed to compensate for about 8 hours of overtime per month, the gap between this assumption and reality has become a significant concern.
Currently, 64.5% of elementary school teachers and 77.1% of middle school teachers work more than the monthly overtime limit of 45 hours – a serious situation. To address this, the government is considering abolishing the fixed teaching adjustment allowance in favor of compensation based on actual overtime hours worked.
In the United States, the concept of “time and a half” is standard, legally requiring employers to pay 1.5 times the regular wage for work exceeding 40 hours per week. In contrast, Japanese teachers have long worked extended hours without receiving overtime pay that reflects their actual working hours.
One challenge in education is the difficulty in accurately tracking working hours. Teachers’ duties include many creative activities that don’t fit easily into standard time management, such as lesson preparation and supervising extracurricular activities. This unique aspect of teaching partly explains why the fixed allowance system has persisted for so long.
Reforming working conditions while maintaining educational quality is an urgent issue. Revising the overtime pay system could be an important step toward achieving this goal.
