I hope everyone had a relaxing summer and a smooth start to the new school year. 

 As many of you know, the CAUS South Board and Representative Assembly voted unanimously to adopt several changes to the 2006-07 budget in order to keep the dues increase at a minimum.  Many factors such as reduction in staff, falling enrollments, rising cost of  benefits, supplies, and utilities,  etc. had a direct effect on the dues increase.

These major cuts are:   

Ø      Cut the fall CAUS South RA;

Ø      Cut the December Board meeting;

Ø      Reduce funding for the South West Bargaining Conference to one person per local;

Ø      Reduce the CAUS South Retreat to every other year;

Ø      Reduce CAUS NEWS publication from 9 times per year to 5;

Ø      WEAC Board alternate(s) is not required to attend all WEAC Board meetings; and

Ø      Reduce the Equipment Budget.   

Our staff will still offer valuable training and seminars for our members and support the locals in their negotiations and contract enforcement efforts.  

Much of our energy this fall will go into the election.  Our purpose is to support candidates that are education-friendly and support our goals as educators.  There will be several opportunities for members to help with this effort and to meet candidates during the Political Fair on October 18th.  Look for further information in the mail and from your local CAUS South Board representative. 

I would like to wish everyone the best for a successful school year and hope you are able to take advantage of the great programming CAUS South and WEAC offer. 

Monika Brown – CAUS South President
brownm@weac.org 

 ≈≈ VOTE ≈≈ VOTE ≈≈ VOTE ≈≈

 ≈≈ VOTE VOTE ≈≈ VOTE ≈≈

WEAC Recommends
Governor Jim Doyle

VOTE NOVEMBER 7

Why You Must Care About This Fall’s Election 

In the last four years, the following issues have been debated at the State Capitol: 

Ø      The “Taxpayer Protection Amendment” would place rigid limits on state and local government resources.

Ø      The “65% Mandate” would require each school district to spend at least 65% of its operating expenditures in each school year on direct classroom expenditures which would hamstring school district budgets for such things as heating the classrooms, food service, bus drivers, librarians, counselors, school nurses, teacher training and technology.

Ø      Plans to take health care decisions out of collective bargaining.

Ø      Proposals to strip funding from our technical colleges. 

Your Vote Will Make a Difference 

HOW TO REGISTER TO VOTE:

Federal and state laws now require every voter in the state to be registered. If you are not already registered, you will need to register before voting this fall. When registering, you will be asked to supply a current, valid Wisconsin-issued driver’s license number or Wisconsin DOT-issued ID card number. If you don’t have one, you will need to give the last four digits of your Social Security Number.  You will be asked to answer two questions:1) Are you a citizen of the United States of America? and 2) Will you be 18 years of age on or before the election? 

There are three ways to register to vote:

BY MAIL: Go to the Wisconsin Elections Board Web site (elections.state.wi.us) and click on “How do I register to vote?” Print out the Voter Registration Application (EB-131), complete it, and mail it to your municipal clerk (a listing of all clerks in the state is available on the Web site).  Applications can be postmarked no later than August 23 for the September primary and October 18 for the general election.

IN PERSON: You may register in person in the office of your municipal (i.e. town, village or city) clerk or at a location designated by the municipality. Walk-in registrations are allowed until 5 p.m. on the day before election day.

AT THE POLLS: Wisconsin also allows registration at the polls on election day. If you are registering for the first time in the state and doing it by mail, registering in person after the mail-in deadline, or registering at the polls, you will need to show proof-of-residence  (see list of acceptable proof-of-residence documents on the Elections Board Web site). 

HOW TO VOTE ABSENTEE:

Once you are registered, you are eligible to vote absentee.  In Wisconsin, you do not need to give a reason for voting absentee. However, you DO need to make a written application. 

To vote absentee:

BY MAIL: Go to the Elections Board Web site (elections.state.wi.us) and click on “How do I request an absentee ballot?” Print out the Application for Absentee Ballot (EB-121), complete it, and send it to your municipal clerk (list on Web site). Mail requests for absentee ballots must be received no later than the Thursday before the election (September 7 for the primary and November 2 for the general). To be on the safe side, you should request the ballot, complete it, and send it in well before the primary and/or election.

IN PERSON: You may request and cast an absentee ballot in person in your municipal clerk’s office or an alternative site designated by your municipality. Requests can be made up until 5 p.m. on the day before the election. Ballots must be delivered to the municipal clerk no later than 8 p.m. on election day.  In most communities, you should be able to register to vote, request an absentee ballot, and cast the ballot in one visit to the municipal clerk. Please note that our election law now requires that the casting of an absentee ballot be witnessed by an adult U.S. citizen. (This is a Wisconsin Statute 11.29 communication with WEAC members, Federal Statute 2 U.S.C.441 b (b)(2)(A).) 

Are you a Cooperating Teacher for Student Teachers 

If you have a student teacher or student observer in your classroom, did you know that they can become a Student WEA member?  In addition to professional conferences and publications, they are covered by the same personal liability insurance that you receive as an NEA member.  These are just a few of the many member benefits they receive for under $32.  Please encourage them to join our pre-professional organization by visiting our website at www.student-wea.org and signing up.  Contact Nancy Clark at clarkn@weac.org if you would like a folder of information to share with your cooperating student.

Nancy Clark, WEAC Organizer/Consultant
1-800-362-8034 X 274

Teacher Pay vs. the Private Sector

 Claims abound that Wisconsin teachers are overpaid and earn more than average workers.  But such statements are based on inaccurate pay comparisons and they ignore 13 years of wage suppression under the QEO.  Valid wage comparisons between teachers and private sector workers must include levels of education, which have a strong correlation with earnings.

 As a work force, teachers are highly educated compared with the general public.

§         Twenty-four percent of Wisconsin’s working population holds a bachelor’s degree or more compared with nearly 100% of teachers.

§         Only 8% of the state’s work force holds a graduate degree, compared with 57% of teachers (U.S. Census Bureau 2003, “Status of the Wisconsin Public School Teacher 2004”).

Census Bureau data which measure earnings by educational attainment show that teachers are underpaid compared with private sector workers who have similar levels of education:

§         The average full-time worker nationally with a bachelor’s degree over age 25 earned $60,664 in 2004—that’s $17,782 more than Wisconsin teachers, who earned an average of $42,882 (U.S. Census Bureau, “Earnings by Educational Attainment,” NEA “Rankings and Estimates”).

§         The average full-time worker nationally with a master’s degree earned $73,024 in 2004—that’s $30,142 more than Wisconsin teachers earned who have a master’s degree and 10 year’s experience (U.S. Census Bureau, “Earnings by Educational Attainment,”  WEAC salary data).

§         Education Week magazine found that Wisconsin teachers earned $10,000 less than other workers in the state with college degrees (“Quality Counts 2000”).

§         Wisconsin teachers with a master’s degree earned $17,250 less than other Wisconsin workers with the same degree (“Quality Counts 2000”).

 Low Starting Pay Threatens Our Ability to Attract and Retain Quality Teachers.  In 2004-05, Wisconsin teachers had an average starting wage of $29,883, the range of which extended from $25,000 to $33,000.

 Consider the following:

§         The average starting pay for college graduates with a bachelor’s degree nationally was $39,179—that’s $9,296 more than what Wisconsin teachers earned (National Association of Colleges and Employers, “Salary Survey, Fall 2005”).

§         Since 1993, under the QEO, starting wages lost 4 percent to inflation, depicting a decline in purchasing power for the profession.

§         Wisconsin’s per capita income increased 63.4% since 1993. If teacher starting pay kept pace with this rate of growth, beginning pay today would be $37,641—that’s $7,758 more than the current statewide average.

Starting pay for teachers is less than starting pay for other professions requiring a four-year college degree. Moreover, under the QEO, starting wages failed to keep pace with growth in per capita income and inflation, an erosion likely to continue while artificial wage restraints remain in place.

Teachers: A Year’s Worth of Work in 9 Months.  One common excuse offered for lower teacher pay is the allegation that educators work fewer hours than those in the private sector. Yet, research has consistently found that teachers--because of work beyond the contract day--work the equivalent of a full-year:

§         The U.S. Department of Education found that “The average amount of time a full-time teacher is required to spend at school is only about three-quarters of the teacher’s work week” (DOE, 1996).

§         In Wisconsin, teachers are, on average, contracted to work 189 days per year, with most consigned to an 8-hour workday.

§         Educators worked an additional 2.1 hours per week on activities outside the regular workday, including clubs and coaching, and an additional 8 hours per week on instruction–related activities for a total of 1,894 hours per year (“Status of the Wisconsin Public School Teacher 2004”).

§         Nationally, teachers report a similar 52.8-hour workweek (10.56 hours per day), which totals 1,996 hours for 189 days worked (NCES, School Staffing Survey 2004”).

These hours are highly similar to other white collar employees, with 15 years experience, who work 2080 hours but have an average of four weeks vacation (19 days) and 8 paid holidays, for a total of 1,864 hours (Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey, 2005).

Conclusion: What does the Future Hold?  Like other workers, increasing numbers of Wisconsin teachers will retire during the next 5-9 years. The question remains: How will Wisconsin find first-class educators as the purchasing power of the profession continues to decline?  And, how will increasing pay disparities between teachers and highly educated employees in the private sector affect the profession’s ability to attract and retain highly qualified individuals?