Florida ranks near the bottom of the list for teacher pay
MIAMI - The United Teachers of Dade says it is alarmed by a new report from the National Education Association (NEA) that shows Florida now ranked 50th nationwide for teacher salaries down from 48th the previous year.
UTD President Karla Hernandez-Mats is calling on the legislature to address this issue as early as its next special session which could happen as early as this month.
"You have high inflation and poor wages and you have teachers who can not stay in this profession as much as they love students," Hernandez-Mats said.
Coincidentally the UTD President is speaking out on National Teacher Appreciation Day.
The NEA reported that average teacher salaries nationwide were $69,544 but the average teacher salary in Florida was $53,098 and the NEA said the minimum living wage for a family with one adult and one child was $58,970.
The NEA said the average starting salary for Florida teachers was $47,178. Hernandez-Mats said there were 500 openings for teachers in Miami-Dade and the UTD said shortages can lead to students being shuffled around and overcrowded classrooms.
Renee O'Connor said she was forced to take two other jobs to supplement her income of $48,000 as a teacher at Miami Norland Senior High School.
She told CBS News MIami's Peter D'Oench, "All this work I do for one of the most important jobs in the county and I am not being paid what I should be. We deal with lots of behavioral issues and test grades and manage overcrowding in classrooms. I have a full-time job as a teacher and I have 2 part-time jobs selling items for eBay and tutoring kids 3 to 4 days a week and sometimes on weekends."
Alicia Gant said she earned $51,000 as a teacher at Barbara Goldman Senior High School in Miami Lakes and had been a teacher for 15 years and was very emotional at a news conference when she talked about how she was forced to move to leave her South Florida home and take another job.
She said a school in Washington, D.C. offered her a huge pay increase. She said she was offered a job paying $99,000 a year and would take that as a single mother trying to make ends meet.
"I had to start my own business," she said. "I am a travel agent as well and I also produce logos for shirts. It is stressful and very time-consuming but you have to do what you can do. I think lawmakers in Tallahassee need to wake up and respect who we are because without us they would not be where they are."
The UTD expresses its concerns on National Teacher Appreciation Day.
Lucia Baez-Geller is a former teacher and was very outspoken.
She said of teachers, "They get up every morning and put on their best face and give the students the world. It is unacceptable to have teachers struggling to make ends meet. They are facing the hard reality of having to choose between paying for rent, paying for gas and paying for food. Enough is enough. We can not stand idly by while teachers are pushed to the brink."
Rep. Ashley Gantt, (D) Miami, who had been a teacher for 7 years, said "Teachers are just as important as professionals like attorneys, judges, and doctors because they shape our future. As a lawmaker, I continue to advocate for teachers and higher teacher salaries so they can be treated with dignity and respect."
Hernandez-Mats said, "We are going to continue to fight for what teachers deserve and our students matter and our schools must be well funded."
CBS News Miami reached out to the Florida Department of Education about teacher salaries.
A spokeswoman Nathalia Medina said in a statement: "If it's coming from the FEA, you know it's a lie."
"When Governor DeSantis signs Florida's budget for the upcoming fiscal year, the state will have invested over $4 billion dollars in pay raises for teachers since the Governor took office. This was accomplished despite constant obstruction from organizations like the FEA. As a result, Florida has increased our teacher starting salary from $40,000 to $48,000."
"The bogus NEA report does not consider a variety of factors, such as cost of living and state income tax. We also have no way to verify that the union is accurately collecting and reporting teacher salaries and not artificially inflating the data with benefits and other forms of compensation.
"One thing we know to be 100% true: when the union gets involved in salary negotiations, teachers lose out. This year, the Orange County teachers' union, one of the largest school districts, stalled out the negotiation process which significantly delayed teacher pay raises. Last year, the Hillsborough County teachers' union used delay tactics to stall teacher pay raises for more than 6 months. Perhaps the FEA should spend more time addressing why over half of the teachers' unions that were required to renew their registration failed to meet the 60% threshold for the 2023-2024 school year and had to petition the Public Employees Relations Commission to be recertified."
