Steps to improve teacher recruitment, retention
The nationwide shortage of teachers and school staff has dominated headlines since the back-to-school season got underway in earnest this fall. It is no exaggeration to say that America’s students are facing a learning crisis; nationwide, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates a loss of 600,000 educators since January 2020.
While the root causes of the teacher shortage are well documented, solutions to fill vacancies are still being worked on. For example, our local union, which represents certified educators in New Haven public schools, reached an agreement to compensate members for adding additional classes as a short-term measure.
The additional resources are welcomed, but this is a stop-gap approach in a single district among many that have growing needs. Districts are recalling retired teachers with promises their pensions will not be affected. In at least one state, the National Guard has been called up for duty.
In order to prevent the learning crisis of students from worsening in the long term, we must overcome the financial disincentives that block access to public education as a profession. Unfortunately, too many have much to lose by working as teachers in Connecticut.
First, they face the “teacher pay penalty” – salaries well below those in private-sector jobs with similar educational requirements. Then they encounter established federal laws that jeopardize their old-age security.
The Government Pension Offset (GPO) can reduce — and often eliminate — Social Security spousal benefits for widows and widowers who rely on Connecticut’s teachers’ pension program. The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) cuts Social Security benefits earned from non-teaching employment by up to 50%.
Fortunately, we have the opportunity to overcome this obstacle to private sector recruitment. There are members of Congress from both sides of the aisle who support repealing the WEP/GPO. Four proposed bills would do just that, including one in the US House of Representatives introduced by US Representative John Larson (D-1st District). Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced another in the upper chamber.
It is time for Congressional and Senate leaders to join their fellow caucuses — and our local, state, and national unions — in getting behind the effort to repeal the WFP and GPO. Students here in Connecticut and across the country now need and deserve highly qualified teachers at the top of their classrooms.
Margaret Rick is a member of the Hartford Federation of Teachers-Retired, AFT Local 1018-R. Jan Hochadel is President of the AFT Connecticut.
