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> but is it a majority these days? Very much so. Statistics from the Census [1]: The proportion of dual earner married couples more than doubled between 19

> but is it a majority these days? Very much so. Statistics from the Census [1]: The proportion of dual earner married couples more than doubled between 1960 and 2000, increasing from 25 percent to 60 percent (Pew Research Center, 2015) So, not only is this close to median income, but 60% of workers have to have two people to achieve it. And teachers work 3/4 of the year (annual amortized salary would be much higher), and have unassailable pensions. The reasons for this, of course, are that 3% of all workers are teachers, school board elections are held on odd (or off) years with low turnout, and controversial legislation is put in the docket on those elections. It is money for votes and it has been for a long time. [1] https://www2.census.gov/ces/wp/2019/CES-WP-19-19.pdf https://www2.census.gov/ces/wp/2019/CES-WP-19-19.pdf

danaris 5y ago
> And teachers work 3/4 of the year This is a common misconception. Teachers teach students in the classroom as part of regular instruction for 3/4 of the year. The vast, vast majority of teachers do a lot of work both during the summer and on evenings and weekends to prepare for that teaching, including lesson planning, grading, teaching summer school, supervising extracurriculars, and even coaching school sports in many cases. And any teacher getting hired now (or, in fact, within the last few decades) doesn't get what you'd think of as an "unassailable pension", at least not in most places. I think that NY State would generally be considered to be one of the more teacher-friendly places, and the last of the "Tier I" retirees here—those whose pensions cover basically their full final salary—are already either retiring or on their way to it. The idea that teachers are overpaid is bullshit propaganda.
- zozbot234 5y ago
  Teachers may not be overpaid on average, but there's way too many of them that are badly underqualified, do not have a proper education in their specific subjects (and let's face it, it's not like a degree in "Education" has much useful content, either) and just do a very poor job of supporting their students. I'm quite willing to believe that the very best teachers should be paid no less than any highly-skilled STEM professional, but the institutional arrangements in K12 education make it unfeasible to spot these effective teachers and pay them what they're truly worth.

danaris 5y ago

> And teachers work 3/4 of the year This is a common misconception. Teachers teach students in the classroom as part of regular instruction for 3/4 of the year. The vast, vast majority of teachers do a lot of work both during the summer and on evenings and weekends to prepare for that teaching, including lesson planning, grading, teaching summer school, supervising extracurriculars, and even coaching school sports in many cases. And any teacher getting hired now (or, in fact, within the last few decades) doesn't get what you'd think of as an "unassailable pension", at least not in most places. I think that NY State would generally be considered to be one of the more teacher-friendly places, and the last of the "Tier I" retirees here—those whose pensions cover basically their full final salary—are already either retiring or on their way to it. The idea that teachers are overpaid is bullshit propaganda.

zozbot234 5y ago
Teachers may not be overpaid on average, but there's way too many of them that are badly underqualified, do not have a proper education in their specific subjects (and let's face it, it's not like a degree in "Education" has much useful content, either) and just do a very poor job of supporting their students. I'm quite willing to believe that the very best teachers should be paid no less than any highly-skilled STEM professional, but the institutional arrangements in K12 education make it unfeasible to spot these effective teachers and pay them what they're truly worth.