AEA, the strongest union in the state. When there is no money for necessities in the state lets give raises to the educators!

I know I wouldn't want to stay in a job that hasn't had a raise since 2008 and there are no plans for one until 2014. The state should find a way to make it work. Bringing back the DROP program isn't one of them.

what a joke

The educators pay raise would come out of the trust fund Steve, not your pocket. I now understand why kids have no respect for teachers, their parents raise them that way.

ALL TEACHERS DESERVE A RAISE. We have been screwed for the last 5 years. An average teacher in Alabama has lost $500-$600 a month since 2008. That equals $6000-$7200 a year and you people want to talk about it being a joke. The only jokes I see are the people who want to write about things they know nothing about.

The AEA is responsible for teachers salaries being so low. How bout dissolve that UNION and spread the extra wealth among the teachers..

AEA has nothing to do with our pay. We pay dues for insurance, legal counsel and such. Talking about things you dont know about makes you look like an idiot.

Teachers are not the only state workers who have not had a raise in years. Teachers do no more than other state workers.

When compared to other workers with a BS degree, Alabama teacher earn more per week worked than the national average. That does not mean they do not deserve a raise, it does mean that despite what AEA says they are not paid less than equally educated employees based on national averages.

COLAs? How about merit increases? There were no pay increases in 2008 for State Employees. Therefore, these folks have gone 5 years without merit increases. In addition, their retirement contribution was increased by 2.5% and health insurance costs were increased as well.

Across the board cost of living increases are great and are the only way that topped out employees ever get a pay increase. But, they, like everyone else, have accepted the fact that there was no money for these increases. If there will be money for pay increases in 2014, it seems that it should first go to those who have continually received exceptional performance evaluations. An employee who has received these marks would be eligible for a 5% increase each year for a total of 25%! No one is expecting this pay retroactively, but removing the freeze on merit increases is much more prudent than an across the board raise.

We need good employees in these positions. Some folks who hired in 5 years ago have had no increase regardless of their performance. While we expect their work to be exceptional anyway, how long can we really expect them to stick around and work hard without adequate compensation. REMEMBER that these employees pay taxes too and most of them are hard working, dedicated individuals who provide a needed service. They shouldn't be expected to bear the entire burden of the State's financial mess particularly when they didn't have the authority to spend us into it.