I once had occasion to speak with a fellow parent about how much teachers make and how absurd their pension plan is.
We were in the hallway of my daughter's school, and when I mentioned the number of people in the education system who make six figures a year, he grew tense. "Shh!" he said. "This is not the place to discuss this!"
Since when does a taxpayer have to concern himself with where he's standing when discussing how his taxes are spent?
A teacher in B.C. rakes in $74,000 per annum after just eight years on the job. There are some really good teachers out there who are worth every penny. But to pay that ungodly sum to all teachers and then guarantee a pension for life based on that amount (or greater), regardless of performance, is organized crime, plain and simple.
An employee of the federal government makes only $55,000 per annum after eight years, and with a quarter the holidays! So where the hell does the B.C.
Teachers' Federation get off pretending their members need a 15 per cent raise? Their members already earn a whopping 35 per cent more than a federal employee - double what most people in the private sector make.
I guess this parent was concerned for his daughter's chances of passing Grade 3 as we stood in that hallway. Whatever the case, he's a hard-working businessman, but there he was, working his fingers to the bone so he could pay taxes that fund outrageous salaries and pensions, all the while feeling obliged to keep his mouth shut while on school property about how he's being extorted. I daresay this qualifies as a quite effective form of totalitarianism.
Another time I was talking on air about teachers' salaries and benefits with the inimitable Phil Johnson on Kelowna AM 1150. I dared suggest teachers were paid aplenty, and Phil didn't hesitate.
"Watch it buddy!" he said, as if I was suggesting we get drunk after the show and shoot puppies or something. "Teachers are among the most important people in society!" he said condescendingly.
"Wait a second," I retorted. "Are you saying teachers are more important than farmers, meat cutters and grocers?"
"Teachers teach our kids!" Phil implored.
"Fine," I said, "but all the people I mentioned feed our kids. Isn't that important too?"
"Well - sure it is." "Then why do all those people have to work twice as hard to pay teachers who put in half the time?"
Again, there are some really good teachers out there who are worth every cent they're paid, maybe more. But as long as the BCTF gets its way, there's no way to reward them.
Every teacher is paid based on seniority and the number of degrees he or she holds, degrees the rest of us are forced to pay for.
Teaching is a rewarding profession which, one hopes, people would freely enter into because, first and foremost, they actually want to teach and be really good at it. But standardized testing is out of the question, so the rest of us have no choice but to stand by and watch as teaching goes from being a well-paying job, to a great paying job, and finally to a completely outrageous paying job.
And what, pray tell, will become of our children if we continue to allow those who teach them to believe they're amongst a rare breed of highly dedicated professionals who perform heroic acts of pedagoguery - less than 200 days of the year?
Well, I'll tell you -
The next thing you know teachers will be making a whopping 35 per cent more than their counterparts in the federal civil service, and they'll still think they deserve more! Oh, wait. My mistake; we're already there.
Whatever you do, don't discuss this within the environs of a school, and certainly not on talk radio. If only the Mafia had it so good.
Mischa Popoff is a freelance political writer with a degree in history.
