So tired of the "teachers work for free every day" FB posts

[Patience]

You will never hear me saying I am underpaid as a teacher. Would I like to make more? Sure, I think we all would! But I make fair pay and have great health benefits for a ten-month contract and I realize that. I would NOT count the pensions as a huge benefit in some states, though. There are some states that currently have pension systems in dire trouble because in past years, the state took away money budgeted for pensions and used it to balance the yearly budget elsewhere. Now they have dug themselves into a hole, and it is entirely possible that the pension system will go broke before any of the people currently paying into it can collect from it.

You do know that most if not all public pensions are underfunded which means that down the road, most of us teachers will never get much of a pension. I started teaching in a public school system when I was 22 and am now 29. I don't count on my pension to help me through my retirement years because the money is just not there! The state may guarantee a monthly income for my retirement but if the money isn't there, trust me they will go back on it or slash it. I will be lucky to get back the money the state takes out of my paycheck every pay period. I'm a person who thinks ahead so I started my own 403B when I was 23 to save for my retirement on my own.

So neither of you believe that you will receive a monthly retirement pension? I find that interesting because one thing I do at work is evaluate pension funds for purposes of division and distribution in divorces. I can assure you that no family court judge in my state is going to evaluate a teacher's future pension benefits at zero, ever. Teacher pension plans (as well as other pension plans) are usually one of the biggest assets in a divorce case, the other one being equity in a home.

 

[Ceila]

So neither of you believe that you will receive a monthly retirement pension? I find that interesting because one thing I do at work is evaluate pension funds for purposes of division and distribution in divorces. I can assure you that no family court judge in my state is going to evaluate a teacher's future pension benefits at zero, ever. Teachers pension plans (as well as other pension plans) are usually one of the biggest assets in a divorce case, the other one being equity in a home.

I'm not sure where they live, but in NJ, the pension issue has been a not topic recently, as the state has failed to make payments to fund the plan. Of course, that precipitated an outcry and dire predictions that it will soon be bankrupt. While there is certainly a major problem with the funding situation, based on various other articles I'm not sure I believe all of the rhetoric and predictions that there will be no money at all for future retired teachers.

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

So neither of you believe that you will receive a monthly retirement pension? I find that interesting because one thing I do at work is evaluate pension funds for purposes of division and distribution in divorces. I can assure you that no family court judge in my state is going to evaluate a teacher's pension benefits at zero, ever. Teacher pension plans (as well as other pension plans) are usually one of the biggest assets in a divorce case, the other one being equity in a home.

I believe I will get something but it will not be at the level that they promise us. I'm not kidding when I say that I'll be happy just to get back what they take out each paycheck. They have already started slashing what I would get in retirement since I'm still considered new (7 years). I would never get the type of pension and benefits (COLA) that retired teachers and schedule A teachers would get. I'm schedule B. It was in the paper just last week that our pension fund did not get the return it expected (7.7 but got 2.2). The article stated it would be considered well managed if it met the internal benchmark of 2.4. RI isn't well know for managing money well or clean politicians.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

You will never hear me saying I am underpaid as a teacher. Would I like to make more? Sure, I think we all would! But I make fair pay and have great health benefits for a ten-month contract and I realize that. I would NOT count the pensions as a huge benefit in some states, though. There are some states that currently have pension systems in dire trouble because in past years, the state took away money budgeted for pensions and used it to balance the yearly budget elsewhere. Now they have dug themselves into a hole, and it is entirely possible that the pension system will go broke before any of the people currently paying into it can collect from it.

To be fair, it hasn't always been robbery to balance budgets that has been the source of pension woes (though that is usually the cause). There have also been cases where landish benefits have been worked into retirement plans despite no real way to fund them (such as allowing teachers to include buyouts as part of the calculation for their final 3-year average salary). In such cases the state is still ultimately responsible for the fiasco, but the unions were entirely complicit in the matter.

 

[Ginny Favers]

I come from a family of teachers who, every time we get together, take it upon themselves to complain about their jobs. They say, "oh, it's my fault for not going into the private sector." And here I am, in the private sector, quietly stewing since I make half of what they make. They must think I'm a total loser for not "making it" in the private sector where everyone's rolling in the dough! I've thought about going into teaching, but where I'm from, there are thousands of applicants for one position, and it's not like my family's level of job satisfaction is very enticing. I can't tell if it's the union feeding them this stuff, or what, because from what I can see, their job benefits are actually quite good.

 

[Ceila]

I come from a family of teachers who, every time we get together, take it upon themselves to complain about their jobs. They say, "oh, it's my fault for not going into the private sector." And here I am, in the private sector, quietly stewing since I make half of what they make. They must think I'm a total loser for not "making it" in the private sector where everyone's rolling in the dough! I've thought about going into teaching, but where I'm from, there are thousands of applicants for one position, and it's not like my family's level of job satisfaction is very enticing. I can't tell if it's the union feeding them this stuff, or what, because from what I can see, their job benefits are actually quite good.

I think it's a combination of that, since I see if first-hand where I work, long-standing feelings among teachers, and the many changes that have come about recently. I do understand that, if you were hired with a $0 healthcare contribution, a later requirement to contribute does impact your household income. But, coming into teaching later in life, having previously relied on the health plan my husband's company offers that has a significant employee cost, I have trouble getting up in arms over the relatively small amount we have to pay for medical through my job.

 

[kamik86]

I think it's a combination of that, since I see if first-hand where I work, long-standing feelings among teachers, and the many changes that have come about recently. I do understand that, if you were hired with a $0 healthcare contribution, a later requirement to contribute does impact your household income. But, coming into teaching later in life, having previously relied on the health plan my husband's company offers that has a significant employee cost, I have trouble getting up in arms over the relatively small amount we have to pay for medical through my job.

I actually have seen this in other industries as well.

Even at my job I have noticed that those of us that are young (under 30) have many less issues with the benefits then the older folks... because they were around when the company had pensions, paid overtime even though we are salaried and all these other benefits that have gone away. Our benefits are still honestly pretty good compared to other companies... they have just gone down alot from before.

I on the other hand tend to be much happier... because my husband works retail and my family also works jobs that are much less lucrative. So Although they see our pay as being really low (Ok our pay is low for gov contractors, however we live in a really low cost of living area compared to all the gov contractors that say live in DC and skew all the average numbers up) and many of them have almost all their friends and many of their spouses working at the same company... so I"m not sure they realize that our company pays so much better then most in the area and our pay is really quite good.

 

[spewey]

I realize this is mostly a U.S. thread, but here in Ontario the pay grid for elementary teachers tops out at about $94,000. Not sure what what the criteria for that is; the median salary seems to be about $70,000. They also have one of the most repected pension plans in the world (commonly referred to as "Teachers"). I think it has assets of over $150 billion at last count.

Which in no way means they are overpaid. It is one of the most important jobs in the world. Whether or not my province - with a debt of over $300 billion, the largest sub-sovereign debt in the world - can afford it is another question.

I just wish we didn't live under the seemingly-constant threat of strikes or other job actions. Makes it just a wee bit stressful for us parents.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

To be fair, it hasn't always been robbery to balance budgets that has been the source of pension woes (though that is usually the cause). There have also been cases where landish benefits have been worked into retirement plans despite no real way to fund them (such as allowing teachers to include buyouts as part of the calculation for their final 3-year average salary). In such cases the state is still ultimately responsible for the fiasco, but the unions were entirely complicit in the matter.

I know where I work the pension system was solvent until about twenty years ago when one of the governors started balancing the budget by deferring pension payments, which then were never made up fully. Our state's system is not particularly exorbitant, ranking 95th out of the 100 biggest national pension plans (with #1 being most generous and #100 being least generous.)

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

So neither of you believe that you will receive a monthly retirement pension? I find that interesting because one thing I do at work is evaluate pension funds for purposes of division and distribution in divorces. I can assure you that no family court judge in my state is going to evaluate a teacher's future pension benefits at zero, ever. Teacher pension plans (as well as other pension plans) are usually one of the biggest assets in a divorce case, the other one being equity in a home.

Yes, I no longer count on the teacher pension plan. Our system is in dire trouble, and it is not looking good. I recently started a private retirement account too, but I missed out on over ten years of contributing to that already because I naively believed I would definitely be taken care of by my pension. I am not even sure what happens if it fails--do I get back the thousands and thousands of dollars I have already contributed? I would think not, but honestly I don't know. It worries me.

 

[marlynnp]

Absolutely untrue for many teachers. Many districts, including mine, do not offer this option, so we cannot choose it. And even if we could, you are still only getting paid for ten months; they are just playing banker and holding back some of your money for you.

So are you saying that you are hired at an annual salary of $45,000 and then only be paid $37,500 a year?

 

[Gumbo4x4]

So are you saying that you are hired at an annual salary of $45,000 and then only be paid $37,500 a year?

No, PP is saying that whether you take 10 checks or 12 (where allowed), it's the same TOTAL - and that total is based on a 10-month or "200 day" contract. A salary of $48,000 for working 10 months could be 10 checks of $4,800 each or 12 checks of $4,000 each.

 

[midnightlouise]

People who complain about their jobs on social media (including forums heh) are just asking for people to flame them. As others have said, there are pros and cons of every job. Teachers do have a lot of legitimate complaints. The only time I really get bent is when people act like we don't. Everyone who works has legitimate complaints. Mine aren't negated by the fact that I only work for pay 10 months of the year.

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

I am not even sure what happens if it fails--do I get back the thousands and thousands of dollars I have already contributed? I would think not, but honestly I don't know. It worries me.

This is my greatest worry too. I am truly glad I had an older colleague who pulled me aside and advised me to start my own 403B. He saw the writing on the wall 7 years ago.

 

[java]

In our school we have various "duties" either recess , lunch or bus. As I am in special Ed, I go with to all specials. Remember also that prep time has to be squeezed in.It may seem like there is free time but trust me it's very limited, at least at our school.

However, not a fan of the work for free posts but I have not seen them. Most of ours are making fun of summer training video subjects. Yes we have to do things during the summer.

I love my job! No complaints from me.

No flames coming from me. Besides the time off for vacations, many teachers also get time off during the day when the kids are at recess, art, music, PE, library, and other special classes.

 

[disykat]

People who complain about their jobs on social media (including forums heh) are just asking for people to flame them. As others have said, there are pros and cons of every job. Teachers do have a lot of legitimate complaints. The only time I really get bent is when people act like we don't. Everyone who works has legitimate complaints. Mine aren't negated by the fact that I only work for pay 10 months of the year.

I totally agree. The thing I would add though as far as forums go is that I don't consider defending your stance when there is a debate going to be complaining! I think many people here do. It's a circle. Someone starts a thread complaining about teachers, people defend themselves, then it turns into accusations that the teachers are the complainers.

(Though in this thread the OP was a teacher complaining about teachers, so one could definitely argue that the teachers are complainers....) Sigh.

I see these kinds of threads to be a vent followed by a debate, not just a bunch of complaining.

 

[midnightlouise]

I totally agree. The thing I would add though as far as forums go is that I don't consider defending your stance when there is a debate going to be complaining! I think many people here do. It's a circle. Someone starts a thread complaining about teachers, people defend themselves, then it turns into accusations that the teachers are the complainers.

(Though in this thread the OP was a teacher complaining about teachers, so one could definitely argue that the teachers are complainers....) Sigh.

I see these kinds of threads to be a vent followed by a debate, not just a bunch of complaining.

Agreed. Honest debate is a far cry from people just moaning about their lot in life!

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

So are you saying that you are hired at an annual salary of $45,000 and then only be paid $37,500 a year?

No, I am saying I don't get paid an annual salary. My contract very specifically says that I have a ten-month contract. If I had an annual contract, I would be paid 1/6 more.

 

[RadioFanatic]

I want to thank you. While I always greatly appreciate the teachers for what they've done for my son, I must admit it drives me crazy to hear complaints about working after school before school etc. I am in a job where I often have to work excessive hours, travel and be away from my son and even miss holidays such as Mother's Day several times etc. I even received the Mother's Day card once from my son telling him that he missed me. Does it stink? Yes, but it is what I do to make sure my son has all that he needs.I have not had a summer off since I was in high school. But please know that I never teachers grief for having those things as it is what they are entitled to in their job, so I never understand why we are given grief if we admit to a bit of jealousy. Thanks again!

 

[disykat]

I don't think teachers are ever surprised people are jealous of our contracted schedule. The problem comes when we constantly have people assume we only work our contracted hours and, because our salaries for those contracted hours are spread equally throughout days/months/years, also maintain that we "get paid" during non contracted hours.