Michigan Department of Education Miscalculates Average Teacher Salary
Department corrects its error; revised figures available
The Michigan Department of Education improperly calculated the average public school teacher salary in the state for the last six years, reporting figures significantly lower than what is correct. Corrected figures for the past two years were recently released.
The teacher salary averages are published in MDE's "Bulletin 1014" report, which divides the total amount paid in salary to all teachers in the state by the number of teachers. The department, however, had included some charter school teachers in the second figure without adding their pay to the total salary amount. The math error produced a deflated average teacher salary from 2004 to 2009.
In 2004 the difference between the average salary reported by the MDE ($52,161) and the correct figure ($54,088) was $1,927, or 3.7 percent. The most recent 2009 report understates the correct salary amount by $3,551, or 6.1 percent.
Charter school teachers generally earn salaries that are considerably lower than those in conventional schools. When they are not included in the calculations the average salary for teachers in conventional districts is $62,556.
The MDE has issued a revised version of the 2009 report that correctly states that the average teacher salary for all teachers that year (conventional and charter) was $62,272, or $3,551 more than the $58,721 originally reported. The 2008 report has also been corrected.
The figures are important because they may be used to inform important policy decisions. For example, the Legislature recently debated a modest school employee pension reform proposed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, and pensions are based on a teacher's final salary.
Michigan teachers command the highest salaries in the nation when taking into account state per capita personal income.
Tight security locked out dozens of anti-right-to-work protesters from the State Capitol as Governor Snyder was delivering his "State of the State" address. Protesters tried to disrupt the speech by banging and chanting outside the building.
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FROM MICHIGAN HOME HELP PROGRAM PROVIDERS — OFTEN FAMILY MEMBERS
ATTORNEY GENERAL ORDERED THE STATE TO STOP TAKING MONEY ON MAY 25, 2012
opinion May 25, 2012
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) "organized” Michigan's self-employed Home Help Program providers for the purpose of skimming dues from their ailing and disabled clients' Medicaid subsidy checks. The majority of these providers are relatives or friends taking care of loved ones. It’s been estimated that less than 25 percent of the providers are hired in an employment setting.
The first counter tallies SEIU dues skimmed since the union and state officials first launched this scheme in late 2006. The second shows the amount skimmed since June 9, 2011, when the Michigan House passed and sent to the Senate a bill to ban this and all similar “stealth unionization” efforts. The third counter shows the dues skimmed since the Governor signed the bill into law on April 10, 2012. The fourth counter shows the amount skimmed since May 25, 2012, when the Attorney General opinion was announced.
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