Ok, I'm more than a little miffed at the teachers in a nearby school district. They have the nerve to protest "horrid working conditions" by punishing their students and not going to the back to school night. Let me put this into perspective:
average starting salary: 30k salaried
work week: 7:30-3:30 m-f
Days off: every weekend, most holidays and most of the summer, a week at Christmas and Easter Many teachers get summer jobs to supplement their school salary.
Retirement: district paid pension, maybe a 401k on top of this.
Medical, dental, and vision with little or no employee contribution
Many sick and personal days (5-10 a year at the beginning). They usually can roll over from year to year until retirement.
1 week paid vacation to start.
Maximum salary at retirement $125k
Paid lunch
Duties include standing in front of a class for about 1/2 hour at a stretch, with intermingled desk time to do paperwork.
Now to put these horrid conditions in perspective
Typical office worker:
starting salary: $10/hour or less, about 20k a year
work week: 9-5 m-f
Days off: weekends, some holidays. 1 week paid vacation after 1 year of service
Retirement: 401k or IRA. If the employee is lucky the employer matches a portion of their contribution. Many don't.
Medical. Employee pays about 1/2 of their portion and 100% of their spouse and kids. No dental or vision coverage.
2-3 sick/personal days a year. use it or lose it
Maximum salary at retirement: $45k
30-60 minute lunch, may or may not be paid.
Duties include sitting at a desk mostly
Typical retail worker:
starting salary: $7.25/hour (minimum wage)
work week: 4-5 days a week, 30-35 hours typical. Schedule varies from week to week and is usually posted a few days before the week starts so planning vacations, family events is hard to do. Usually has to work most weekends and some holidays such as Thanksiving day, Christmas day, 4th of july. Hours can be anywhere from 7am - 10pm or later.
Annual salary: about $12k
Retirement: maybe an IRA and possible employer match
No medical, dental, or vision plans for part time workers
No sick or vacation time off. You don't work, you don't get paid.
Maximum salary: $30k for a manager
Duties include standing on your feet for your entire shift, lifting heavy boxes, etc.
un-paid 30 minute lunch after 4 hours of work, if you are lucky enough to be scheduled for more than 4 hours that day.
Unemployment (the other 9-10% of the work force)
If you're lucky you qualify for unemployment benefits. If not, you rely on your spouse's pay to cover the bills. If you're really unlucky, you have moved your entire family in with your parents because both you and your spouse are out of work.
So, just how horrid are those union negotiated contracts that the teachers are forced to endure really? They should be thankful they aren't working retail or unemployed.
