Said It Here

Why being too good at a sub job keeps you from getting hired permanently

Administrative incentives often trap good temporary substitutes in their current roles rather than hiring them as permanent staff. This leaves workers struggling to secure steady, long-term employment while their strong performance is actively used to keep them in temporary positions.

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

  1. 1
    Talking directly to the principal to ask what is required to become a strong candidate
  2. 2
    Attending staff meetings and professional development
  3. 3
    Applying for jobs at other schools
  4. 4
    Keeping work quality high and treating a temporary job as better than no job

In their words

Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.

r/Teachers1 person · September 2026

“I have heard stories of building substitutes getting passed on job opportunities here for outside candidates, but I’ve had multiple teachers say they are pushing for me for one of the jobs.”source ↗

“I’ve had other teachers advise me to “not be too strong of a building substitute” as it can give reason for them to keep me at that position.”source ↗

AltruisticStand1375 · r/Teachers · 2 upvotes
r/humanresources1 person · September 2026

“I am struggling hard to find a permanent workplace.”source ↗

“So i am gonna get evaluated in 3-4 months if they still want this role.”source ↗

Correct_Molasses6894 · r/humanresources

Where this came up

People with this problem also raised