A Movement is Born

When PEEHIP and the Teachers Retirement System announced deep, painful cuts to health and retirement benefits, Birmingham-AFT mobilized to fight. Thousands of teachers and paraprofessionals have met, signed petitions and reached out to their brothers and sisters across the state of Alabama. A movement has been born. The voice of educational professionals is being heard in Birmingham.

Educators across the nation report that they are witnessing hunger among their students despite government and private nutrition programs intended to ensure children have enough to eat in and out of school, according to a new survey of classroom instructors.

In poll after poll, parents, teachers and school staff say that school safety and order are their highest school priorities. Educators know that other efforts to improve schools will not be effective without an orderly and safe learning environment.

The average salary for traditional public school teachers increased 4.5 percent in 2006-07 to $51,009, according to the AFT's latest teacher salary survey, marking the first time average teacher pay exceeded $50,000 and the first time since 2003 that teacher salaries surpassed the annual rate of inflation.