Andrew Laming, the federal member for Bowman, was very quick to retreat after he posted this clanger on his Facebook page: "Are teachers back at work this week, or are they 'lesson planning' from home? Let me know exactly."

Following the expected deluge of criticism, Mr Laming deleted his post saying all he wanted to do was "get people talking".

Bowman MP Andrew Laming. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Let me answer his question. The short answer is: "Yes."

The long answer is that teachers in Australia have more mandated face-to-face time than most other OECD nations, while a 2015 survey found that more than 42 per cent of teachers worked more than 50 hours per week, and 23 per cent worked more than 55 hours per week.