After Years Of Lagging Behind The Rest Of The Country, Teachers In Maine Could See Pay Raises
Molding the minds of America's youth. Seems like a rather important job but for many teachers who work across the state of Maine, the importance of the job has never been seen in wages. That's because Maine teachers have been making $7,000 a year on average than the rest of the teachers across New England.
But according to WGME, that may all change if a new bill is passed. Teachers in Maine will finally get competitive wages amongst other New England states but they will also be subject to more competitive requirements for getting a full-time job.
The bill, being heard today in Augusta, would raise the minimum salary for full-time teachers in Maine to $40,000 per year. With that raise, would also come addition and more stringent requirements to become a teacher in Maine. That would include more hands-on classroom experience from incoming college students, as well as the State looking more closely at grade point averages and recommendations for new teachers fresh out of school.
For some, this is a long overdue bill. Especially for those teachers who have been working long hours and receiving some of the lowest pay in the nation for the position. Detractions will wonder where the additional funding for increased teachers salaries will be drawn from and whether or not smaller towns or municipalities will be on the hook for some of the money.
How do you feel? Do teachers in Maine, specifically ones making low salaries, deserve a raise?