News Release
Achieving Higher Salaries through Economic Growth
5/13/2002
Mary Schwarz
406-444-5523
mschwarz@state.mt.us
There have been several recent comments and statements attributed to me about the subject of teacher salaries, some of which simply aren’t accurate. I want to “clear the air” on this issue and make certain that everyone knows where I stand.
For the thousands of you who have heard me speak on the subject of economic development and education, you know how I feel about the teaching profession. Teachers in Montana and across the country serve a critical role in our system of democracy and free enterprise. They prepare future leaders to govern and to build businesses that make our communities strong. In a society where teachers are being asked to assume more and more of the roles that parents have traditionally filled, their value is all that much more important.
My family and I also have a very personal interest in supporting teachers and the education community as a whole. Six members of my family are educators. They, and all teachers, have dedicated themselves to making a better future for Montana.
In terms of statistics, we all recognize that Montana is ranked 48th or 49th in the nation in average teacher salaries. We also recognize how very difficult that makes it for us to retain the high quality teachers we have now and to recruit the next generation of high quality teachers we need to help Montana’s economy grow.
I have always maintained that Montana’s teacher salaries are lower than they should be. I have also always maintained that in order to raise not only teacher salaries but all salaries we must grow our economy. It is very difficult to raise the wages on some workers in Montana and not others. Health care workers and law enforcement officers to name a few, are also below the national average, which again indicates that we need to concentrate on creating a better overall economy for Montana families.
I have previously cited a statistic that ranks Montana 8th when compared to other states in terms of the relationship between teacher salaries and private sector wage earnings from the American Federation of Teachers’ Salary Trends 2000 survey. For 1999-2000, Montana was actually ranked fifth when comparing teacher salaries to private sector annual earnings. What this survey shows is that both our teacher salaries and private sector wages need to be increased, compared to the rest of the country. Our average annual wage per job in Montana - all jobs -- compared to other states has steadily declined over the past twenty years and we must change that trend.
The economy that built the education system we have today and drove the high wages of all Montanans (including teachers) twenty or thirty years ago doesn’t look the same anymore. Teacher salaries have, like many other things in Montana, followed the fortunes of our economy. The ultimate answer to all of these problems is to turn our economy around.
One of the ways we hope to do that is through our tax plan. By putting more money in the pockets of Montanans, we can grow our economy. The income tax reduction will be supported by revenue replacement, making the plan revenue neutral and ensuring that all dollars committed to education and teacher salaries will continue to be there. We want to find every dollar for education that we possibly can.
I know that teachers and our school system are the bedrock upon which we will build our economy. Improving teacher salaries from the 48th ranking will not happen overnight. However, I am committed to working with the education community to find creative ways to make that a reality. I am committed to ensuring that we can retain the teachers we have today and that we can recruit the next generation of Montana teachers. By ensuring that we continue to have great teachers, we will ensure that we serve those who will gain from them, our students.
Government should not serve the system, but rather serve the child. We will continue to work hard and do everything we can to make certain that we continue to have strong schools and great teachers. If governments at all levels work together, we can find innovative solutions to our economic challenges, so that we might all win for the future of this great state.
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