A preschool teacher posted a viral TikTok stating that she couldn’t fathom working a “desk job” over being an educator who gets to work with young children daily, and there were a number of folks who disagreed with her point of view.
Brier Payson (@lolwhosbr.i.er) posted a viral TikTok that’s accrued more than 50,000 likes on the popular social media platform of her sitting outside on the grass beside a tree, bopping from side to side and looking off into the distance with a smile on her face.
“I’ll never understand an office job, I make 23$ an hour, hanging outside with the coolest 4 yr olds, I talk about dinosaurs and unicorns on the daily… Desk job? Could NEVER be me”
She adds in a caption for the video: “And i can make my living doing this”
There were some commenters who didn’t appear to agree with Brier’s point of view, however, like one TikToker who countered with their own reasoning as to why someone may prefer having an office job over spending time outside and talking with 4-year-olds about unicorns and dinosaurs: “Desk jobs can provide a lot of stability + benefits which can be very appealing to certain people.”
@lolwhosbr.i.er And i can make my living doing this #teacher #preschool #summer #lovemyjob ♬ Customer Service by Sugar Pit – Sugar Pit
Someone else replied with what they saw as a downside of working with children: “The overstimulation when they start to scream and cry at the same time, I could never”
Another TikToker also remarked that they weren’t fond of spending time with other people’s kids: “how u feel about an office job is how I feel about hanging out with other ppls kids”
There were also commenters who expressed that the rates Brier was receiving for her work in childcare weren’t necessarily indicative of the rates in their areas: “i make $11 at my daycare and i feel like i’ve been through war every time i leave”
“child care where I love pays like $8 an hour,” another TikTok user replied.
The mean hourly wage for Childcare Workers is $14.22, as per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, Brier indicates that she is a “#teacher” in her caption, for which the average salary in the United States ranges from $31,000 to $54,000 per year.
It seemed that there were also people who agreed that they weren’t stoked about working in an office either, like this one individual who gets to hang out with dogs all day, rather than 4-year-old children: “$25+ / hour grooming dogs and I couldn’t be happier”
But there was another childcare worker who said that Brier’s depiction of what it’s like being a childcare worker isn’t entirely accurate: “I’m a nanny and can not imagine not enjoying the sun and books and being free”
And then there was someone else who suggested that she get an office job where she gets to work from home and chill in her garden all day, and probably get paid more money for doing so: “Or get an office job where you can work from home aka in the garden and earn double of that so that you don’t need to work as many hours”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Brier via TikTok comment for further information.
