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I can feel your pain. When we moved here I took a $9 per hour pay cut in nursing. Plus the cost of living is higher here.
My husband is retired and his pension was not taxed in out state where he worked and paid taxes on the money before it went into the account. NOW, NC taxes his pension....NC taxes everything though....we have to file letters of protest with taxes each year in case the court case is ever won about taxes translplant residents pension checks.
I'm so glad that North Carolina doesn't have a teachers' union. All unions do is pick members' and the public's pockets and protect lazy teachers.
That's one way of looking at it. Another way of looking at it, however, is that the lack of a union allows school to make teachers policemen during their every free moment. It isn't the lack of time; it's the nature of the duty. If I had wanted to be a cop, I would have become one. By putting teachers in crowd control duties, the schools put the teacher in line for getting into a conflict with students, and the result of that will be lawsuit or arrest for the teacher. And will the school district pay that teacher's legal costs? Fat chance.
That said, any smart teacher in NC, will take his or her license and move north, where at least they can avoid the trouble that crowd control duties can bring them. Then folks who think teachers whine to much can deal with the consequences of having fewer and fewer qualified teachers. Maybe the parents of NC youth will then do the whining.
It's my understanding that anyone employed in North Carolina is free to join a union including federal, state and local government employees.
Some NC public school teachers are union members. However, unlike some other states, no NC public school teacher is required to join a union in order to work in their chosen profession.
Collective Bargaining is illegal in NC. That is why unionization doesn't take place. Its one of only 2 states. They but a bill before the legislature this yr to overturn this, but it died...
It's my understanding that anyone employed in North Carolina is free to join a union including federal, state and local government employees.
Some NC public school teachers are union members. However, unlike some other states, no NC public school teacher is required to join a union in order to work in their chosen profession.
The "union" you are referring to (SEANC) is basically an employee organization that lobbies for state worker rights...but has limited power because of the collective bargaining issue.
Doesn't much sound like teaching in NC would be a good fit for you. If you can't join 'em, stay away from 'em? This comes from one whose entire teaching career was in NC. I enjoyed it.
As with ANY profession, there will be things you can take and/or can't.
I'm so glad that North Carolina doesn't have a teachers' union. All unions do is pick members' and the public's pockets and protect lazy teachers.
I agree with you about unions in general, but for teachers NC is at the other extreme. Some of things that teachers here have to put up with is amazing to me and I wish that they did have more power than they do. Its unreal that teachers aren't allowed to tell their opinion on things in the school system without fear of reprisal. But unions always end up corrupted. Like you said, they make lots of money off the members & taxpayers and they protect incompetent workers.
FYI--I was a NJ teacher...now a NC teacher in Johnston County(as of this past Aug.)
Pay--@$10,000 less here
Duties--Bus duty in NJ....bus duty here(every 3-4 weeks...its a rotation by grade-level. So its not each week. Only in afternoon for about 10 minutes. It was the same in Jersey)
We had duty-free lunch in Jersey...I have duty-free lunch here too.
Grade-level meetings 1x per week here during planning time----1x per month in Jersey. But I actually like meeting 1x per week with my grade-level to catch-up/plan.
So the big difference is basically pay. But my cost of living is over $25,000 less here in NC(taxes/auto insur.) and I have a MUCH nicer/newer/bigger house here in NC...for half the price than in Jersey. That, along with a nicer climate, shorter commute and a less corrupt state overall politically, was worth the pay-cut plus a bit more responsibility/duties/committes at my work.
Also--I am MUCH prouder to say "I am from North Carolina"...rather than "I am from New Jersey"
Everyone made a lot of good points but take it with a grain of salt. We're both teachers who just moved from Miami. House insurance is a few hundred a year compared to $6-$10,000/year in Miami. Are you selling a home in Tampa? Homes are much cheaper here than in Miami for comparable neighborhoods - say $250,000 in Cary (a very nice area in my opinion) vs. $400,000 or much more in Miami area. If you make a profit on a house in Tampa and use the profits to buy someplace cheaper that's just as nice here, you should be able to reduce your monthly expenses to balance the moderate loss of income (Yes, it's true.).
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Unions for Whiners? Nah, don't think so.
