Go back a few years – say before the Great Recession.

2008.

If you started as a teacher with a 4-year degree you would make 30,430 / year. If you planned on earning a master’s degree you could with that same pay scale expect to almost double that amount in salary by the time you came to 30 years of service ($57,810 / year).

That would be a $27,380 / year increase.

A %90 increase in salary.

You would also get longevity pay for 20 of those years.

Now take the same scenario for 2023.

If you started as a teacher with a 4-year degree in 2023 you would make $39,000 / year. If you planned on earning a master’s degree you could with that same pay scale expect to make in salary by the time you came to 30 years of service $55,100 / year.

That would be a $16,100 / year increase.

A %41.3 increase in salary.

You would never get longevity pay.

Teacher pension is tied to the four highest years in terms of salary. In 2023 with 30 years of service (with a graduate degree that you would not get paid for), you would be making $2,710 / year less in real dollars than you would on the salary schedule used in 2008.

Oh, and no more medical insurance for retirees if they were hired after 2021.