Why are teachers and nurses underpaid?

[Anonymous]

Is it because both occupations are mainly performed by women, and women are not valued as highly as men?

[Anonymous]

Historically, yes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it because both occupations are mainly performed by women, and women are not valued as highly as men?

Yes.

[Anonymous]

I’ve heard that — and that in countries where teaching is a male dominated profession and doctors are mostly female, teachers are paid more than doctors. But I haven’t read the study/don’t have a cite so it might be an Internet rumour.

[Anonymous]

I think that is the common belief.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think they are underpaid. Yes I think they work hard and deserve our respect but what the earn is ovoid considering the amount of days off they get over the course of a year ( teachers) compared to other jobs. I am not s nurse but do shift work similar to a nurse schedule, they’re not working every day either and depending on where they work and seniority can get cushy schedules too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think they are underpaid. Yes I think they work hard and deserve our respect but what the earn is ovoid considering the amount of days off they get over the course of a year ( teachers) compared to other jobs. I am not s nurse but do shift work similar to a nurse schedule, they’re not working every day either and depending on where they work and seniority can get cushy schedules too.

Well, at 60 hours a week during the school year and 25-30 hours a week during my unpaid summer, I definitely feel underpaid. If your reasoning for keeping teachers’ pay low is some perceived idea of days off, then consider yourself corrected. Today was a day off. I worked 8 hours prepping for next week. I’ll finish planning tomorrow, on Labor Day.

Don’t confuse “days off” with “days not working.” The only difference to me is that I can pee when I want to on weekends and during the summer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think they are underpaid. Yes I think they work hard and deserve our respect but what the earn is ovoid considering the amount of days off they get over the course of a year ( teachers) compared to other jobs. I am not s nurse but do shift work similar to a nurse schedule, they’re not working every day either and depending on where they work and seniority can get cushy schedules too.

I want some of what you are having. There are areas where teachers do not even make $30k starting out.

[Anonymous]

Where I live a new teacher makes something like $40k and the 50+ teachers are making between $80 and $90k. To me this discrepancy seems unfair because the young teacher's job is just as difficult as the older teacher.
With nurses I understand this a bit more because an experienced nurse will have to pick up a lot of slack if her coworkers are brand new and clueless.

[Anonymous]

Nurses are not underpaid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where I live a new teacher makes something like $40k and the 50+ teachers are making between $80 and $90k. To me this discrepancy seems unfair because the young teacher's job is just as difficult as the older teacher.
With nurses I understand this a bit more because an experienced nurse will have to pick up a lot of slack if her coworkers are brand new and clueless.

Excellent point. I think it should be 75-100 to start and experienced teachers closer to 200k with expectation that they spend last 2-3 years of teaching training and helping some of the newer teachers. New teachers in first5 years notoriously have difficulty with classroom behavior management, organization, and dealing with administrative issues. It would be nice if they built in some ongoing support systems for many of them. At that point most older teachers are just counting the days to retirement anyways, it might be a nice change of pace for them.

[Anonymous]

Are teachers really underpaid?

I know a teacher who teaches special Ed 4th graders. She is pulling in $133k per year with 18 years in. Insane benefits and a pension. The ones who bellyache the most about being underpaid in teaching are the ones who don't have a lot of years in and who work at crappy school districts.

Go read up on the epic debacle of the entire state of Illinois. There are teachers there collecting like $100-200k per year in pension who make more in pension than they made in contributions to the system. They didn't even serve as senior level teaching admin positions. It's completely absurd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think they are underpaid. Yes I think they work hard and deserve our respect but what the earn is ovoid considering the amount of days off they get over the course of a year ( teachers) compared to other jobs. I am not s nurse but do shift work similar to a nurse schedule, they’re not working every day either and depending on where they work and seniority can get cushy schedules too.

I am a teacher in MCPS and we are definitely not underpaid.

[Anonymous]

The same reasons why social workers are. Any of the helping professors are lower paid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nurses are not underpaid.

What do they earn in this area?
How many years of higher education?