The Detroit News did a story that quoted two public school teachers, married to each other, who say they were leaving the profession, citing pay cuts and pay freezes.
“Thomas Silak and his wife, Tricia Johnson, are both leaving Northville Public Schools this month after 25 years, saying they feel overworked, unsatisfied and frustrated by pay cuts, pay freezes, bigger class loads and micromanagement by the state,” The Detroit News reported. “Money, they said, would not help them stay.’”
The Detroit News added a quote from Johnson.
“I’ve told my daughter I am not paying for her to get an education to be a teacher,” Johnson said. “How do you get your best and brightest into the classroom to teach?”
Silak’s gross pay went from $86,723 in 2013-2014 to $97,293 in 2019-20. And at a time when many in the private sector had their businesses shut down, Silak received a 2.5% increase in gross pay in 2020.
Johnson’s gross pay went from $84,279 in 2013-14 to $96,975 in 2019-20.
The couple brought home a combined income of $194,268 in 2019-20.
And each of them would be eligible for an annual pension of $35,250 (based on their salaries at retirement and 25 years of experience) and they would still be eligible for Social Security.
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.