Do local teachers unions value students or salaries?
Dawn Collier of the California Policy Center evaluates teachers unions’ recent demands for higher teacher salaries. Their resounding rhetoric of being underpaid falls apart when confronted by data. Plus, districts can’t afford exorbitant wage spikes without heavily cutting staff members and budget items. If unions are trying to invest in students, they’re doing everything wrong (a sentiment echoed by CPC’s Jackson Reese), asserts Dawn. To receive daily updates of new Opp Now stories, click here.
Teachers union strikes in Sacramento and Mt. Diablo made headlines over the last week as unions across the state take advantage of pandemic fatigue to strong-arm districts into paying their ransom: higher teacher pay.
If California parents didn’t learn it during the height of the pandemic, they can see it clearly now: teachers unions don’t care about kids. If they cared, they would be focused on what should be every school’s top priority: keeping kids in school after two years of trauma and making up for all that learning loss.
But teachers unions are utterly shameless.
Student test scores in reading and math are in the toilet, so what do teachers unions demand? More money!
Districts offer teacher raises they can afford without risking bankruptcy, so what do teachers unions demand? Unrealistic pay hikes, budgets be damned!
Student absenteeism is at an all-time high, so what do teachers unions demand? To be paid by student enrollment instead of daily attendance!
Californians are struggling with inflation and higher gas prices? Who cares that they’ll also have to pay higher local taxes to pay for teacher raises!
The not-so-secret charade the unions play is pretending teachers are woefully underpaid. But California’s public school teachers often make more in pay and benefits than the average salary for other private sector workers in their districts with college degrees — for nine months of work.
This article originally appeared in the California Policy Center. Read the whole thing here.
Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity