Teacher Compensation

Teachers: Do you know your rights when it comes to union membership?

While teachers have had a newly restored freedom of choice when it comes to union membership for over a year now, there is still an information gap regarding this choice and what it means for teachers.

According to a recent Teacher Freedom Project poll conducted by…

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Poll: 1 in 3 teachers want to negotiate salary & benefits for themselves

More than one-third of teachers would prefer to negotiate salary and benefits for themselves, according to a national survey by the Teacher Freedom project. The survey asked 2,000 teachers in the 22 states most impacted by Janus v. AFSCME, including Minnesota, for…

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Teachers: Your salary and benefits won’t be affected if you aren’t members of the union

Yesterday we shared a video made by teachers for teachers addressing a misconception about union membership and job security.

Another mistaken belief is that an educator’s compensation or health insurance will be in jeopardy if he or she isn’t a union member. Both salary and benefits…

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How many teachers need to resign before the union takes notice, does a better job?

We do think if enough teachers exercise their right to resign from the union, that the union is more likely to do a better job representing all teachers; and that would be a good thing. What is “enough?” We do not know. But if very few teachers resign, Education Minnesota is unlikely to shift its focus away from politics and on to the every-day issues faced by teachers in the classroom and as professionals.

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Teachers Pensions far from fixed, says Star Tribune

We are pleased that the paper reported that rating agencies continue to warn Minnesota that it has much more work to do on pensions, and that if it does not reform pensions, Minnesotans will pay more to borrow money for building schools and building roads. But it would be better if reporters did not rely on biased sources for articles, especially union officials and politicians who cut the deal.

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Are public employers in Minnesota complying with the Janus ruling? Employers should immediately stop deducting “fair share” fees.

The High Court ruled last Wednesday that employees who are nonmembers of the union now must give their affirmative consent before any fees may be deducted from their paycheck. Nonmembers by definition have not given their affirmative consent.

Fair Share Fee Payers. This means that employees who declined to join…

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Crockett Column: The Teacher Pension Problem Will Return, Again

The pension bill, which Gov. Mark Dayton supports, is expected to become law though some lawmakers are stunned at the growing expense. Pensions are supposed to be covered by employer and employee contributions that are then invested by the state, but Minnesota stopped paying the full cost of pensions in the early 2000s. Imagine if you did that with your mortgage and then tried to catch up to avoid foreclosure.

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Average Teacher Salaries in Minnesota and the Nation: Interactive Map

Minnesota secondary teachers have an average wage of $62,590 plus benefits. (Average annual wages for secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education, May 2017.)

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