Not getting paid

Well, I finally concluded the poll on “Will you get your due.” I was not surprised by the findings. This was hardly a scientific poll, but it still gave insight into what teachers think. Of 53 votes, 32% felt that they would get their due if they gave proper notice. 26% said “no” while 23% said “don’t take chances.” 19% said they thought “maybe” they would get their due if they gave proper notice. These results were hardly surprising.

A full 49% felt that they would not get paid if they give proper notice. It sheds some insight into teachers who do midnight runs or just plain quit without notice. Most of us teach because we like having the pay packet at the end of the month. We are not against charity, yes we love teaching, but we have expenses, families to support, habits to support and pay is important. At least now, teachers who feel they may not get paid don’t have to feel paranoid, they have plenty of company.

A fence sitting 19% felt that “maybe” they would get their due if they gave proper notice. These teachers go ahead and do the right thing and give notice, but they spend time wondering whether they will get their proper due when the contract ends. Add these to the No group and you have more than 2/3 of the teachers who are not sure if they will get their final pay.

Schools and institutes really need to work on this issue. This is not an issue to be dealt with by teachers, teachers are at the mercy of school directors. Rather, school directors need to start doing things to ensure that contracts are properly honored and teachers get their due, not just with their school, but with other schools in their local area. If schools don’t want teachers jumping ship at the last minute or doing midnight runs, they need to help change the mindset of teachers by giving them more security.

I would like to hear comments on this, things that schools can do to help change the mindset that this poll reveals.