Paid

 The headline read: One Way to Ease the Teacher Shortage: Pay More. I did not fall out of my chair laughing, but the image did occur to me. It seemed like the proper reaction to the suggestion made by the powers that be that the way to attract more employees to a certain vocation would be to compensate them in a way that made them feel rewarded for choosing a profession that has inherent challenges and an image problem. 

A long time ago, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth and I was managing a warehouse, my wife suggested that I give teaching a try. At that point in my life, it seemed like a lateral move, with the potential for advancement. I had already risen about as high as I was going to at the employee-owned company that had promoted me to management and elected me (twice) to its board of directors. I was paying rent and keeping frozen pizzas in the refrigerator, but when it came to putting much in the bank, it seemed like it might be a tough place from which to consider retiring. So when the Intern Credential train pulled up the station, I hopped on. The Oakland Unified School District had just weathered a strike by its teachers that brought more salary and benefits to them. I could slide right into this teaching gig and still get my teeth cleaned and fluids checked on a regular basis, and these folks had a salary schedule. 

Salary schedule? You mean I could actually plot my path of advancement? I wouldn't have to wait for my co-workers to approve my raise, if I got one? That sounded like the place for me. An opportunity to learn and grow and maybe even put some money away. 

And eventually that was what happened. Not enough to keep us from stretching a few dollars and pinching a few pennies. Our economic reality was such that we kept our heads above water and managed to pay our mortgage and keep those frozen pizzas coming. And going. The kid we were able to raise on the salary I made as a teacher was a gift, of sorts. One that started with the very impressive medical benefits given to me by the book warehouse, and continued with those afforded me by the contract I had with the school district. 

And yet, I have been made aware over and over again throughout the years that the common denominator in almost all discussion of the teaching profession is the way we are compensated: poorly. Sure, there are those wags who will go on and on about how "it must be nice to get paid for those three months you're not working," without ever understanding that the only way I get a check during the summer is if I schedule deferred pay from the other nine months. The vacation homes and the second car are things we joke about. Frozen pizzas are still regularly found in our freezer. 

And teachers aren't getting paid enough. Helping form young minds should pay more than the guy signing up folks for a Visa card and a free T-shirt at the baseball game. But maybe that's a story for another time.