Teacher pay rates have become a national conversation with public school employees in Oklahoma, West Virginia and Kentucky going on strike in the past week.

Some Michigan school employees have taken to social media — joined by this state’s largest teachers union - to portray teacher pay here as comparable to Oklahoma. But the average Oklahoma teacher earns $42,460 in a school year, or nearly $20,000 a year lower than the average Michigan teacher ($62,280).

How much teachers earn in Michigan varies greatly between school districts.

The Michigan Education Association posted alink on Facebook to a story on the Oklahoma teacher walkout with this comment: “Falling pay and crumbling schools. ... What’s behind teacher protests sweeping the country? Even in Michigan, though the average teacher salary may appear higher than the national average, the constant pay actually declined 11 percent in nine years due to other factors — rising costs of living, higher education, healthcare and retirement.”

Eira McDaniel, a former teacher at Niles Community Schools, posted on the MEA Facebook page: “average is too high for Michigan I retired after 30 years in my career with a Masters degree at 57500”

Niles Community School is located in the southwest corner of the state in Berrien County, home to some of the lowest teaching salaries in Michigan.

McDaniel was correct in stating she retired with a master’s and earned $57,500. That would be the top of the union pay scale at her school district under the 2011-14 union contract in effect when she stopped working. The current contract has raised the salary that McDaniel would have retired at to $61,957.

At the Eau Claire school district, which is about 13 miles north of Niles, the top-of-the-pay scale salary is $62,224.

Those pay rates for high-seniority teachers lag behind Michigan’s statewide average teacher salary of $62,280.

But McDaniel errs in suggesting that Niles and Eau Claire teacher pay levels are typical in Michigan. They are not, although such claims do appear widespread among unionized public school employees.

This is illustrated by a Facebook comment posted by Wayne-Westland Community Schools teacher John Retzer, which was related to a teacher job fair for Oakland County schools.

Retzer commented: “If you know a recent grad looking for a job and want to encourage them to continue with their vows of poverty and humiliation.” Retzer’s salary was $85,204 in 2017-18, according to the state of Michigan.

How much teachers make in Michigan depends on which school district employs them. Teacher salary data shows that even neighboring school districts can have large pay disparities.

Consider public school districts in two other Berrien County districts, Benton Harbor and St. Joseph.

St. Joseph teachers, on average, make about $15,000 more each year than those in the Benton Harbor district.

In 2017, a St. Joseph Public Schools teacher at the top of the union pay scale earned $75,094. At Benton Harbor, teacher pay tops out at $63,200.

The pay gap isn’t explained by district funding levels. In the 2016-17 school year, Benton Harbor Area Schools received a combined $14,292 in state, local and federal dollars per pupil for its general fund, which covers regular operating expenses, including payroll. That is $5,303 more per pupil than the amount St. Joseph Public Schools received in 2016-17, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Lynda Hurlow is the executive director of human resources for the Berrien County Regional Education Service Agency. She said that Benton Harbor teacher salaries reflect a consent agreement the fiscally troubled district entered into with the state of Michigan in 2014 after overspending its budget and having to borrow to pay bills.

Hurlow said Benton Harbor teachers made less because of the school’s financial constraints.

Benton Harbor’s higher funding and lower teacher pay levels predate the consent agreement, though. In 2011, Benton Harbor schools received $2,508 more per pupil in general fund revenue than St. Joseph schools. That year, the average teacher salary was $43,228 in Benton Harbor and $60,387 in St. Joseph, according to state data.

Meanwhile, teachers at Michigan’s largest school districts make far more than their peers in Benton Harbor, Eau Claire or Niles.

A teacher at Troy Public Schools in Oakland County can make $91,250 at the top of the pay scale. In Ann Arbor Public Schools in Washtenaw County, the top salary is $87,721. The top salary at Chippewa Valley Schools in Macomb County is $96,310.

OpenTheBooks.com is a nonprofit that tracks salaries of nearly every government worker in Michigan and other states. It has salaries of Michigan teachers and other states.

A St. Clair Shores man was issued a citation and fined $150 by a district court after he hosted guests via the homesharing website Airbnb in the spring of 2017.

According to the St. Clair Shores’ City Attorney Robert Ihrie, homeowner Michael Dorr was engaging in a nonresidential business activity that violates the city’s zoning ordinance. St. Clair Shores also has ordinances that govern home rentals. Ihrie said Dorr was given multiple warnings before being ticketed.

As of April 6, there are no listings on homesharing services Airbnb and HomeAway from St. Clair Shores. Dorr said that when he first offered his home through Airbnb in April 2017, around 10 to 15 other homes in the city were advertised on the service.

The St. Clair Shores City Council may consider a new ordinance to create rules regulating homesharing.

Mayor Pro-Tem Candice B. Rusie said in an email that she and the other members of the city’s zoning ordinance subcommittee would look into the issue soon.

“We've heard from proponents of Airbnbs, as well as people with concerns regarding them. I can see the benefits of allowing them on a regulated, limited basis, which is why I’m open to having these discussions regarding a possible ordinance. But I also want to make certain any legitimate concerns are addressed in any eventual ordinance we may bring to council for consideration,” Rusie said in an email. “As with the process of investigating any new law, we would need to listen to people from all sides, and take into consideration issues and concerns they raise.”

If an ordinance is adopted, Dorr said he would be happy to follow it.

St. Clair Shores isn’t the only local government in Michigan that has imposed restrictions on services like Airbnb, or is considering them. Officials in Mackinaw City, Holland and Spring Lake Township have restricted homesharing.

Two bills were introduced in April 2017 that would prevent local governments from banning homesharing. The bills, are sponsored by Republican Sen. Joe Hune and Rep. Jason Sheppard, but neither has been taken up for consideration. The bills would designate the short-term rental of a dwelling as a residential rather than a commercial activity.

Dorr told Michigan Capitol Confidential that he began listing his home on Airbnb to earn extra cash to use for remodeling. He said that since he bought the house for $75,000, its value has risen significantly, and he believes he could sell it for $300,000.

Dorr said that when he began hosting guests at his home in the spring 2017, some neighbors expressed concerns about unknown guests staying in the neighborhood. Others complained that guests brought dogs with them.

Those complaints eventually reached Ihrie, who said he personally visited Dorr to tell him that hosting guests through Airbnb violated the zoning ordinance.

According to Ihrie, Dorr continued hosting guests even after he sent him a couple of warning letters. After that, Ihrie issued Dorr a citation. Dorr acknowledged he received a visit from Ihrie, but says he never received a letter.

Dorr has not hosted any Airbnb guests since early December 2017, and on March 20, the district court levied a $150 civil fine for the citation.