Teacher wages increase in Miami

BY LILY GORON, STAFF WRITER

AS OF SEPT. 30, FLORIDA’S minimum wage has increased to $12, $1 more than last year, with a planned increase of $1 every year until 2026. Employers are now required to pay their employees at least $12 per hour. More specifically, the teaching profession has received a raise in salaries this summer. All staff and faculty working in Miami-Dade Public Schools will receive more pay.

In 2019-2020 Florida ranked no. 29 in starting teacher pay in the country, however, in 2020-2021 it was to no.16, as per the Florida Education Association. While the average teacher pay still ranks no. 48 in the nation as of 2023.

State law requires the county and union to negotiate wages, hours, terms and conditions of employment. On July 27, 2023, the United Teachers of Dade, a non-profit organization and the official teachers union, along with Miami-Dade County after a bargaining session, came to an agreement to increase the pay of teachers across the district, which includes more than 27,000 employees. In a written statement published by CBN News, the union expects a wage increase of between 7% and 10% for the county’s full-time teachers. Staff and part-time teachers will see an increase of 4%.

“This would be extremely beneficial to teachers in Miami, as increasing wages is something many hardworking teachers deserve,” junior Taronish Unwalla said.

Furthermore, this new contract between the union and county will provide Exceptional Student Education teachers with increased supplements of $1,000. This also could serve as a solution to aid in the district’s recruitment of new staff and personnel in schools across

Miami-Dade County. The starting salary for a new teacher is now $52,470, up from approximately $50,000 in the last few years. The union included a few of their own terms in the agreement such as an annual increase of paid leave for current employees of the district, free healthcare for full-time employees, two new healthcare plan designs and a way for employees to report administrators’ misconduct, as per CBS News.

“This salary improvement will align MDCPS teachers with the national average teacher salary,” MDCPS School Board Chair Mari Tere Rojas said. “Additionally, starting salaries for new teachers was increased to $52,570, which will hopefully attract new applicants to the profession.”

Florida laws require district school boards to adopt an annual salary and consider annual performance assessments, professional experience and educational degree level in order to decide what to place the new salary at.

“Working individuals will have more financial opportunity than before to do things that help drive and make our economy,” senior Hassan Shahid said.

As per the official Florida government website, Gov. Ron DeSantis approved several bills this year, allowing for more funding opportunities for teachers. The General Appropriations Act, one of these new bills, focuses on an increase of teachers’ salaries based the type of work they do. Additionally, $3.5 million was allocated for the Dual Enrollment Teacher Scholarship Program, and $4 million was reserved for the Teacher Apprenticeship Program and Mentor Bonus.

By the end of 2023, teachers will receive a boost in their salary. Florida is investing money to pay education personnel and include benefits in their workplace. DeSantis has agreed to the new wages and has begun working on a new plan for Florida’s education system, putting teacher’s pay as a priority.