Teacher’s raise has a chance

Posted on February 6, 2019

 

State Sen. Andy Manar is sponsoring a minimum wage bill for teachers (PHOTO:Dave Dahl)

 

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD– To the list of bills which former Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed — and are getting another chance under new Gov. JB Pritzker — you can add the “teacher minimum wage” bill.

Illinois public school districts would be required to pay a minimum – sliding from $32,076 in 2020-21 to $40,000 in 2023-24.

“Why are you approaching this as a standalone issue, rather than trying to incorporate this effort into the evidence-based model” of the new school funding formula, asked State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) of the sponsor, State Sen. Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill).

“The model doesn’t address what I think is reflective of the larger economy, which is disparity in wages,” answered Manar.

In addition to assuring a bigger payday for teachers, Manar’s goal is to ease the state’s teacher shortage.

SB 10 has passed the Senate Education Committee.

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