Teachers across the country, including Washington, Arizona, and West Virginia, are calling for higher pay and in some cases, going on strike. According to a recent IPSOS/USA Today poll, a majority of Americans don’t think that public school teachers are compensated fairly. The issue is resonating in Louisiana.
Public school teachers in Louisiana earn on average about $49,000 a year. That's $1,700 less than the average among southern states.
Governor John Bel Edwards is making teacher pay a top priority in the 2019 legislative session. He’s proposing a yearly salary increase of at least $1,000 for Louisiana teachers. But some teacher unions say more money is needed.
On this week's Capitol Access, Debbie Meaux, President of the Louisiana Association of Educators, explains why her members are asking for higher pay. LAE is a teacher union representing about a third of Louisiana’s public school employees.