ATLANTA — A new study issued by the country’s largest payroll administrator shows an unfavorable trend in pay for teachers. Their salaries are growing at a much slower rate than the rest of the country’s workforce.
Verdaillia Turner, president of the Georgia Federation of Teachers, said the pay gap is something state leaders need to fix.
“We’re not surprised that teacher pay still lags other workers in this country. It shows us particularly in Georgia where we place the value on teaching and schools," said Turner.
In fact, the ADP study shows that since 2021, open positions for teachers have increased while the actual number of employed teachers has largely remained flat. In the months following the pandemic, teacher employment also fell due to an uptick resignations and retirements.
“What COVID showed teachers is that there’s another way to live. They may not have all the money they used to have but they don’t have all the expenses they used to have or all the headaches either," said Turner.
Educator Carl Weaver has been with the DeKalb County school system since 1999 and said pay plays a role in whether someone signs on to become an educator.
“The income is not feasible enough to take care of student loans, mortgage and childcare," said Weaver.
Weaver said it's not uncommon for teachers to carry a couple of other jobs to supplement the typically low salary they get. He also said districts could do a few things to ease the burden.
“Maybe a grant or something for possible home ownership at a reasonable rate to offset the amount of income that people are receiving," said Weaver.
ADP’s study also highlighted that the salary competitiveness rate has worsened from 2018 to 2023 among young teachers who are 20 to 30 years old.