US - Do teachers get paid in Summer holidays?

[Iris]

I'd always assumed they did, but something in another thread (the child working thread) made me think they DON'T.

A related question would be - if not, why on EARTH is anyone a teacher? A job that requires many years of college with 3 months of unemployment built in? No thanks. I mean, I love my job, but my family needs to eat and pay the mortgage all year round.

[kckgirl]

I worked in a private school years ago. Teachers and staff there had the option to be paid from September to mid-June, or they could opt to have their salaries paid year round.  I opted for the lower amount year round for a guaranteed paycheck in the summer.

[dawbs]

"it depends"

MOST places will allow you to split your salary over 9 months or over 12 months. 

(FWIW, my parents are both in education and they always went with *not* getting paid over the summer--because their former employer tended to screw up the tax/withholding if they did it over 12, and because they could 'subtract' what they were getting paid 'extra' at the beginning of the school year and invest it --so end up ahead in the total over a year.

My sister and I, who are also both in education, get paid over 12 months--sis because she doesn't want to deal w/ the budgeting nightmare and me because I don't have a choice [but would side w/ sis if I did}

[Library Dragon]

While a contract is generally for 10 months teachers, librarians, etc., often have their pay broken down into payments that are issued through out the year.  In my case my contract often ran from 1 August to 30 May, with "pay checks" issued every two weeks during 12 months, so I was paid during the summer.

Very few school personnel actually have three months off.  That is an idea that has spread and is hard to dispel. 

[jmarvellous]

If a teacher has the option to get paid over 9 or 12 months, they aren't getting paid a different amount! They're just getting paid a different amount per check.

My mother has generally elected to get paid every month, but some of her teacher friends have not had that choice before -- they had to get paid for the weeks worked.

And for what it's worth (nothing to her employer, in terms of OT or bonuses), she's probably in the office 10.5-11 months of the year in some capacity, plus loads of hours beyond the school day and some Saturdays (for both obligatory 'volunteering' at school events and just extra work).

[Outdoor Girl]

When my Dad first started teaching in 1954 (I think), he got paid once a month, at the end of the month.  So when he got his cheque at the end of June, he wouldn't get paid again until the end of September.  Which was tough.  My Mom was a school nurse so she got paid the same way.  They used to work at summer camps to help make ends meet, even after my brother and I were born.

Now?  Most school boards in this area spread the money over 12 months and pay the teachers and other staff every two weeks.

[Luci]

Teachers in our district were on contract and in the early 70's were paid for 9 months - budgeting was kind of scary for an young family living close to the vest, but we did it. Then we were on crontract but paid on a 13 pay cycle per year. Kind of cool. I didn't have budget any more and it felt we were getting an extra paycheck.

Lucas taught math and physics, I worked nights in data processing for an insurance company, then was a school librarian. Since we didn't have to be at school in the summer, Lucas worked for a moving company and I worked for summer school. We did any extra duty we could - he worked lunch hours and fan bus, I worked EvenStart and any other special government grants I was offered.

It was tight, but we got the kids through college with no student debt by careful management and have retired comfortablly. A 950 sq ft home, no basement, a nice road trip vacation every couple of years were enough to make us happy. We look better now, but the same amount of income.

When my Dad first started teaching in 1954 (I think), he got paid once a month, at the end of the month.  So when he got his cheque at the end of June, he wouldn't get paid again until the end of September.  Which was tough.  My Mom was a school nurse so she got paid the same way.  They used to work at summer camps to help make ends meet, even after my brother and I were born.

Now?  Most school boards in this area spread the money over 12 months and pay the teachers and other staff every two weeks.

Pretty much the same for my parents. Dad taught Industrial Arts (Woodworking and mechanical drawing - now computerized!). Summers, Dad worked construction. Mom was a sub until 1955 when she went back full time. First as an office machines teacher (typing), then as an English/Literature teacher. Again, tiny house, some vacations, sent us through college. They started on the 12/13 pay period thing about the same time Lucas did.

[alkira6]

I get paid a base salary and it is spread across 26 pay periods so that I get paid every 2 weeks.  I also work a 6 week stint in summer school and Saturday school during the year. This year I've also added in virtual school (online courses) and after school computer lab/tutoring time. All of the extras I get paid for once a month.

[Sharnita]

Yeah, the reality is that you just defer some of your pay. In most cases you have the option of 21 or 26 pays, assuming you are in a district where there is summer vacation.

There was a district in Michigan that basically went bankrupt last spring and the teachers who had opted for year round pay ended up never getting the summer money for work already done because the district was disolved.

[Lynnv]

As others have said-yes and no.

No-DH is not paid for the 2 months in the summer when he isn't teaching.  His contract is for 10 months and that is what he gets paid for.

Yes-he does receive a paycheck those months because his pay for the 10 month contract year is spread out over the full calendar year.

[z_squared82]

I worked in a private school years ago. Teachers and staff there had the option to be paid from September to mid-June, or they could opt to have their salaries paid year round.  I opted for the lower amount year round for a guaranteed paycheck in the summer.

My friend works for a public school. She also has this option. She chooses to get paid all year. If she ever chose to teach summer school, she would either get an additional check, or the amount of her current check would increase. (I don't know which b/c she has never opted to teach summer school.)

[Dindrane]

One other thing that seems to be at least reasonably common among teachers is that, often, their salary is sort of secondary to their spouse's. I know a number of teachers who got into it both because they liked teaching, but also because they had kids and teaching allowed them to have a more similar schedule to their children while still earning a paycheck.

I have several relatives who are teachers, and most of them work during the summer at least some of the time. One of my aunts worked as a teacher at an educational summer camp, and I think one of my cousins mostly just teaches summer school for the school district. My aunt doesn't work during summers anymore, because she doesn't really need to (my uncle has always had a professional job that is their main source of income, and their children have grown up and moved out). I think she appreciates getting a couple months off that make it easier to take vacations and pursue her hobbies.

In the post-secondary world of teaching, a lot of professors have the option of getting their salary in either 9 months or 12, and there's always at least some summer school classes available that would generate additional pay. But for them, I think having summers off (even if it means their pay is lower) is actually a net benefit, because it gives them more time for research. Having a couple months of uninterrupted time means they are able to travel, if necessary, and focus entirely on their research and writing projects without having to take time out for preparing class materials or grading assignments.

But I think part of the answer with teaching is that, unfortunately, it's not a well-paid job. People do it because they think it's important and love it, and figure out how to make the budgeting work. It ought to be paid better than it is, since it is a professional job, it does require a bachelor's degree (at least) and certification, and it's a pretty difficult job to do well, but it often isn't.

[cwm]

My sister got a job last year as a para in a school. When she started in January, she didn't get the option to spread her pay out over the summer break. When she came back this year for a full year, she was given that option. I'm not sure whether she took it or not, but she's also looking to get on at a summer program offered by the school to get another six weeks of actual working out of the year.

[Slartibartfast]

A group of high school teachers in my hometown ran a house-painting business over the summers.  (Summer, in this case, being the only time of year you could paint your house without getting snowed on.)  Seems like a neat way to get a year-round paycheck and still hang out with your co-workers, although I'm sure it was hot and exhausting labor!

[Lynn2000]

POD to a lot of these points. When my dad was teaching junior high I don't think they had the option to get paid over 12 months, but since you knew when and how much you were getting paid, you could budget for those months without a paycheck. Some teachers even had certain amounts automatically put into a separate bank account, which they would draw on as their "paycheck" during the summer.

And, lots of teachers do extra work in the summer months (a friend's dad did housepainting during the summer) or have side jobs (one of my dad's colleagues had his own store that he worked at part-time during the school year and full-time during the summer, reselling garage sale finds).

It is a really tough job to do well, and even more so because a lot of people (parents) think it's easier, for some reason.  I have a lot of service professionals in my family--teachers, social workers, religious leaders, etc.--and those are really jobs that you do because you love it and feel you are making the world a better place, not for the money. Though, it does help if your spouse has a different job that pays better.