Now that over half of the 2019-2020 school year is over and teachers in North Carolina have not been given a raise, they are frustrated, wondering if and when their raise will come.
In early January, the state Senate failed to override Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of the state budget, which included a teacher pay raise bill, effectively freezing salaries for school employees.
Disagreements between the Democrats and the Republicans in the state legislature have stalled the state’s budget, and most Democrats have sided with Governor Cooper.
Senate Minority Leader Dan Blue and the North Carolina Association of Educators told reporters that higher raises were worth holding out for. The governor vetoed the proposed 3.9% raises, and the budget he proposed would give every teacher an average raise of 9.1%.
The original state budget was also vetoed by Cooper in June of 2019, and no changes have been made to teacher salaries since then. North Carolina teachers will not be given a raise until at least April since the earliest the budget can be passed is April 28, unless the governor calls a special session.
“I will negotiate the pay raises of teachers and other educators separate and apart from Medicaid expansion,” Cooper said at a press conference. “I am vetoing this budget because it prioritizes the wrong things. It values corporate tax breaks over classrooms, gimmicks over guaranteed school construction and political ideology over people.”
Chapel Hill High School English teacher Tom Stanfa said he is personally offended by the frozen teacher salaries.
“I’m upset with both parties for not being able to come to a consensus on the budget and not give teachers raises,” Stanfa said. “I’m tired of teachers being used as bargaining chips by either side to try to get their agenda passed.”
Chapel Hill High School teachers are still hoping for a new budget and payroll plan this year.
“I hope the state is able to figure this out in a timely manner. Teachers work extremely hard and deserve higher wages,” cultural arts teacher Paul Estrada said. “I would vote for at least 10% higher wages, but I am biased. I hope the governor’s veto works.”
English teacher Brad Mitchell said that he is fine with not getting a raise now, as long as teachers do end up getting a substantial raise.
“The general assembly is doing it on purpose,” Mitchell said. “It’s an election year, and they don’t want anything to get done.”
Social Studies teacher Veena Rajan said she understands why the governor vetoed the budget but is still hoping for a raise.
“It sucks that everything is connected together with the way the budget works,” Rajan said.
The North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE) released a statement shortly after the veto supporting Cooper.
“The educator pay proposal put forward today is wildly insulting to educators of every level,” Mark Jewell, President of the NCAE said. “We stood with the Governor on his veto of the budget because it failed North Carolina educators on every level, and we stand with the Governor now in mutual disgust over this bill.”
Chapel Hill High School NCAE representative Corey Waters said he “stands with the statement released by NCAE and with other NCAE educators.”
According to the National Education Association, the national average public school teacher salary for 2018-2019 was $61,730, and the average salary for teachers in North Carolina in 2018-2019 was $53,975.
Many students at Chapel Hill believe North Carolina educators are not getting paid enough compared to those in other states.
“The state budget shows how little teachers are valued,” junior Vedika Shah said. “The raises should be a bipartisan issue, and since the government is acting like it isn’t, it shows they don’t care about it enough.”
Another student voiced similar concerns.
“I think any pay raise for teachers in this state is a good thing, and I think, if members of the two parties can’t agree on a larger raise, then they should go with the minimum,” junior Raquel Stearns said.
Cooper’s proposed plan would also restore a master’s degree pay for career educators and invest $80 million for schools to hire more nurses, counselors, psychologists, social workers and school resource officers to promote student mental health and school safety over two years.
“While it would be nice to have a raise, I agree with the governor,” social studies teacher William Melega said. “As a veteran teacher going eight years without a substantial raise, I believe it’s time for a fair raise. I do not want to have a small raise for my 20 plus years of work as a teacher.”
