WASHINGTON, July 24 — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today introduced the Pay Teachers Act after hearing from more than 200 teachers and educational leaders from across the country during a town hall at the U.S. Capitol. At a time when school districts nationwide report serious staffing shortages — largely due to unprecedented levels of stress, burnout and low pay — this legislation begins to address the teacher pay crisis in America and ensure that all public school teachers earn a livable and competitive wage that is at least $60,000 a year and increases over the course of their career.
In addition to Sanders, Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Ben Ray Lujan (D-N.M.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) also cosponsored this legislation. Joining Sanders at the town hall today were Markey; Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT); Princess Moss, vice president of the National Education Association (NEA); and educators from across the country.
“If we are serious about the need for a bright and hopeful future for America, we must understand that there is no more important job in our country than educating our young people. And yet, public school teachers in America have one of the toughest, one of the most demanding and one of the most under-appreciated jobs in America,” Sanders said. “The situation has become so absurd that just four hedge fund managers on Wall Street make more money in a single year than every kindergarten teacher in America combined – over 120,000 teachers. Far too many of our nation’s public schools are under-funded, under-resourced and in major need of repair. Far too many of our public school teachers are under-paid, under-appreciated and overwhelmed. And, as a result of the so-called ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ that Trump signed into law a few weeks ago, a bad situation is about to get even worse. If we are going to have the best public school system in the world, we have got to radically change our attitude toward education and make sure that every teacher in America receives the compensation that they deserve for the enormously important and difficult work that they do. No public school teacher in America should make less than $60,000 a year.”
Today in America, nearly one in eight teaching jobs is vacant or filled by a teacher who is not fully certified. Approximately one-third of all public school teachers make less than $60,000 a year — including more than 90% of starting teachers. Hundreds of thousands of teachers have to work two or three jobs during the school year to make ends meet. Meanwhile, the average weekly wage for public school teachers has decreased by 5% over the past 30 years, adjusted for inflation. Today, 44% of public school teachers quit the profession within five years.
The pandemic only made things worse for educators, with the historic staffing shortages disproportionately affecting schools primarily serving students of color and students from low-income backgrounds. Recent studies show that, of all workers, K-12 public school teachers were the most likely to report higher levels of anxiety, stress and burnout during the pandemic. Further, as badly as public school teachers are paid, our school custodians, food service workers and paraprofessionals earn even less. In America today, nearly 35% of paraprofessionals and school staff earn less than $25,000 a year.
Unacceptably, the Republican reconciliation bill recently signed into law is disastrous for public education and for public school teachers. While it provides a $900 billion tax cut to large, profitable corporations and a $1 trillion tax cut to the top 1%, it cuts over $300 billion in education funding for millions of students and educators throughout America and provides over $50 billion a year for private school vouchers.
“If we are going to attract the best and brightest young people into teaching, if we are going to encourage teachers to teach in underserved communities, if we are going to improve teacher retention and morale, and if we are going to improve student academic outcomes, then we need to pay teachers in America decent wages and decent benefits,” Sanders continued. “We need to make it clear that high-quality public education is a major priority. That is why I am introducing the Pay Teachers Act. Because if we can provide over a trillion dollars in tax breaks to the top 1% and large corporations, please don’t tell me that we cannot afford to make sure that every teacher in America is paid at least $60,000 a year. I look forward to working with teachers and schools all across the country — some of whom I had the pleasure of hearing from today — to make that happen.”
The bill would also provide all teachers with at least $1,000 annually for classroom supply expenses and help schools create well-paid career ladders that allow teachers to advance without leaving the classroom. Additionally, it includes Markey’s Pay Paraprofessionals and Education Support Staff Act, which would raise pay for paraprofessionals and education support personnel to at least $45,000 a year or $30 an hour. In addition to requiring that states establish a minimum teacher’s salary of $60,000 a year and pay all teachers a livable and competitive salary that increases as experience and responsibilities grow, the Pay Teachers Act would significantly increase federal investments in teachers and public schools, including tripling Title I-A funding and funding for rural education programs, diversifying and expanding the teacher pipeline, and strengthening leadership and advancement opportunities for educators.
“Sen. Sanders’s bill, the Pay Teachers Act, will help close the pay gap by significantly increasing federal investments in public schools and raising annual teacher salaries to at least $60,000—as well as providing increases throughout teachers’ careers—to help ensure they are paid a livable and competitive salary,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “It would also invest in the teacher pipeline and leadership opportunities. This is a crucial federal investment to help sustain the teaching profession, which will directly help us provide greater opportunities to our students. At a time when others are abandoning public schools and our students, Sen. Sanders is proposing a necessary strategic remedy that will help attract teachers to the profession and retain them.”
“Across the country, most of us across race, place and background want the same thing – strong public schools where every student can thrive and strong communities that support them. In order to attract and retain the passionate, qualified educators that inspire our students, give them the one-on-one support, and do everything in their power to help each student succeed, we need to pay teachers like the professionals they are. America’s educators applaud Sen. Bernie Sanders for introducing the Pay Teachers Act, which takes steps to ensure that our nation’s committed public school educators and educator support personnel receive professional recognition, including appropriate pay while also augmenting the current federal programs that support the educator pipeline. We urge Senators to support educators and cosponsor this common-sense legislation that invests in our students, educators, and public schools,” said NEA Vice President Princess Moss.
The reintroduction of the Pay Teachers Act comes as the Trump administration continues to illegally withhold nearly $5.5 billion in critical funding for public education that was appropriated by Congress, including funds that states use to provide professional development for teachers and to pay teacher salaries. Sanders and his colleagues have repeatedly pushed for the administration to immediately release these funds.
More than 30 organizations endorsed the Teacher Pay Act, including American Federation of Teachers, National Education Association, National PTA and The Education Trust.
Read the bill text here.
Read a summary of the bill here.