I have given 35 years to teaching, and now I can’t afford to retire

I am starting my 35th year in the classroom. When I started out back in the 1980s, even though I made less than $10,000 a year, I had enough to allow a comfortable lifestyle and put almost half of my pay into savings. In my early career, my salary climbed steadily. I earned a master’s degree, which increased my compensation.

When I moved to Florida from Virginia in 1988, the salaries were less than $200 apart. Since then, my wages have stagnated. My counterparts in my old Virginia district make at least half again what I make. In fact, my take-home pay has declined slightly each of the past few years because of increases in insurance and other costs. I now struggle to pay bills and carry more debt than I would like. It is very hard to cut back on the way one has been used to living.

A recent Post letter-writer dragged out the old “summers off ” argument. This is specious. First, many school districts have mandatory training during the summer and most teachers spend summers taking mandatory coursework (which they pay for themselves), planning for the next year, or working a summer job to make ends meet. Few have enough money to travel. As far as other “time-off benefits,” anyone who thinks that a teacher’s job ends when the last bell rings is delusional. Virtually everyone takes work home regularly, plus they support their school by working in extracurricular roles.

I am eligible to retire in three years, but I won’t be eligible for Social Security or Medicare at that time. I will not be able to retire because my retirement benefits, unlike many other professional jobs, does not include supplemental health insurance or continued membership in the group insurance. My pension is in no way guaranteed. I live in fear that the state will announce that it has not invested our funds wisely, and cannot pay us.

I could have chosen virtually any other career. But I have sacrificed my old-age security and my standard of living because I wanted to make a difference. I would like to not worry about paying for utilities and car insurance, to buy new glasses when I need them, and have some money to save for retirement without implementing extreme austerity measures.