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Saturday, November 23, 2024

Cooper signs North Carolina teacher pay raises into law

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North Carolina teachers and support personnel will get a one-time bonus of $350, while teachers also will get pay raises. | Canva

North Carolina teachers and support personnel will get a one-time bonus of $350, while teachers also will get pay raises. | Canva

A bill that gives all North Carolina teachers and support-personnel $350 bonuses and adds teacher pay raises was signed into law by Gov. Roy Cooper.

Cooper approved the bill, which hands out the one-time bonuses by Oct. 31 and gives teachers step-increases that will average $1,000, North State Journal Online reported. These raises are based on experience and longevity as a teacher. 

Lawmakers approved the $350 bonuses handed out across the board instead of performance-based bonuses because COVID-19 prevented school districts from collecting evaluation data.

Cooper vetoed teacher pay raises twice in 2019, North State Journal Online reported.

“I signed this bill because it funds step increases for teachers that have already been promised, but it falls outrageously short on raises we need to give teachers and all school personnel like bus drivers and cafeteria workers,” Cooper said, North State Journal reported.

A $5-billion budget shortfall estimate caused by the coronavirus didn’t stop Democrats from asking for larger bonuses for teachers and non-instructional employees, North State Journal reported. Had lawmakers approved that budget amendment, teachers might have received $1,250 and other school personnel $1,000 if the governor signed off on the change to the budget.

Average teacher pay increased to $55,600 in 2019-20 from $44,990 in 2013-14, raising the state from near the bottom to 29th in the nation for average teacher pay, House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) told North State Journal.

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