Pay Raises

(warning, opinion ahead, let the beating begin)
The FLS more stories today here and here about the teacher cost of living increases, or lack of, in Stafford county.

A couple of interesting things in the report. One teacher states the need to carefully monitor their personal expenses because of the commute from Spotsylvania. The very next paragraph has protest organizers talking about potential job opportunities in Fairfax and Prince William counties. Are organizers looking at commuting expense and the time investment to work that far from home?


And since when does anyone have a right to expect a 4.5% raise every year for just doing the same job as last year? I myself have what I would call a nice engineering job. It required years of engineering school, then more after work education to get a masters. After many years of experience, I know not to expect a raise unless my company excels, and even then, it is usually no more than just cost of living. There is no concept of a step increase, no entitlement. If I want more money I need to go out there and perform better than my peers and beat out other companies for more work.

Bravo to those teachers riding bicycles to work. They are doing exactly what many of is commuters are doing, looking for cheaper modes of travel! And maybe they are teaching a lesson to some of the students - you might not need a car. Unfortunately I feel that others are mixing in a bad lesson about entitlement.

PS. The teachers that excel and promote the overall capability of the school system at this financially tight time should be generously rewarded after we come out of this hole. That's how the rest of a capitalist society work.