Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-08-04
PAY OF THE SCHOOL TEACHER.
It Averages Less Than That Of Street
Cleaners.

Il Averages Less Than That of Street
Cleaners.
School marms In the United States
are paid less than street cleaners
The women who are intrusted with
the early education Of the citizens Of
the country draw less money than the
men who scrape and wash the boule-
wards.
Only four cities in the United States
Chicago, Washington, Columbus,
Ga, and Meridian. Miss. pay their
school teachers as much as they pay
their sewer cleaners and street sweep
ers-and two Of these cities employ
negroes at the work-which accounts
for the difference.
The committee on salaries, tenure,
and pensions of the National Educa-
tional association presented these
facts in its report to the association at
Asbury Park on July 8. astounding
the world by the comparison.
The report shows that women school
teachers are ranked, in pay, below
the lowest grade of unskilled workers
and that the people Of the United
States trust their children at the vital
point Of their lives into the care Of
women who are paid less than black
smiths, carpenters, painters, or any
other line of skilled labor.
Astounding Comparisons In Report.
Here are the startling facts brought
out in the report:
The salaries paid school teachers Of
the elementary schools Of the United
States average less than those paid to
sewer cleaners.
Every skilled worker in the United
States receives more pay than the
great bulk of primary teachers.
The salaries of women high school
teachers are about the same as those
Of skilled workers in their own cities.
The salary Of a woman high school
teacher In a small city about equals
that Of the sewer cleaner in a large
city.
Chicago Shines BY Comparison.
The report says in part: I'm only
four cities in the United States does
the minimum salary of the woman
teacher in the grades exceed that paid
to street cleaners by the same NUM-
cipality. Those cities are Chicago.
Washington. Columbus, Ca. and Me-
ridian. Miss, and in the last two
named the laborers are colored, while
the teachers are white, which un-
doubtedly explains the discrepancy.
I'm New York, including Brooklyn,
the average yearly wage Of a street
cleaner is $631; the minimum teach
ers' salary Is $40. In intellectual
Boston the street cleaner gets s603.
the teacher 1852 In Philadelphia
the street cleaner gets s503, the teach
er $47O. In San Francisco, whose
teachers are among the highest paid
in the country, the minimum teach
er's wage is $500, but the man who
cleans the streets gets $3.50. In At
llanta, Ca, the street cleaner gets $500
year, the woman thought fit to begin
the career of a teacher $3.50. In Buff
falo the street cleaner gets $3.50, the
teacher $40O. In New Orleans the
street cleaner gets $461, the teacher
$315.
Plane Geometry at $500 a Year.
"The wages of the street cleaner
represent the returns of the common
est unskilled labor, while in scarcely
a city Of Importance can teacher
obtain a position, at even the mini
mum wage, without some previous
experience, at an even lower salary,
or some special preparation In addi-
ton to the education given by the
public schools. For example. candi-
dates for teachers of elementary
schools in Baltimore before they are
even allowed to try the teachers ex-
lamination must have completed the
course In one Of the Baltimore train
ing schools for teachers or they must
have taught two years acceptably, and
must have passed examinations In
English. including grammar, COMPOSE
ton and literature. history and ciVics.
arithmetic, algebra, plane geometry
either physics. botany. or zoology
geography, physiology and hygiene.
For all this the pay at the beginning
is $500 a year, with three annual ad-
vances of $48 and one of $50. When
she has accomplished all her ad-
vances the Baltimore elementary
teacher has attained the giddy hei ght
of $5O4 a year, more than 500 less
than a New York municipal street la
borer gets, and he never had to know
any grammar. Think Of demanding
plane geometry for $500 year!
City Teachers Work Long Hours.
1T may be argued that the laborer
works more hours a day than the
teacher. Certainly in country schools
teachers have little work to do outside
the classrooms. But In the modern
city school the reports called for, the
planning and preparation OF lessons
the reading and correcting or exer-
cises, the professional calls, attend
ance at teachers meetings, and so on
will bring teachers average working
day up to ten hours
TT may further be argued that the
teacher has a chance to rise from this
minimum salary quoted. But OF all
the women In all the elementary
schools in the 467 largest cities OF
America, ranging from 1000 to l.
OOO. 900 and more in population, only
thirty seven hundredths Of l per cent
receive as much as $1,000, while A
per cent-nearly half-receive less
than $500 a year. and 1.13 per cent
less than $4OO.
Teachers Draw Less Than Molders.
But If you want to appreciate the
true meagerness Of teachers salaries
in this country compare them with
those Of skilled labor. 1t is sufficient
that teaching is not only not regarded
as a profession in this country but II
is not even considered a trade. This
report presents the minimum wages
paid molders in jobbing and machine
foundries in 1O3 cities. In Chicago
the minimum wage Of such molders
lis 5000 a year; that Of teachers $3.50.
The Chicago schoolma am may have
|outstrlpped the naughty street cleaner
but he is still far behind the pluto
cratic iron molder. In New York the
molder also gets 5000, against $54O
for the teacher. In Boston he gets
l$725, against her 1852; in Philadel-
phia $50, against her $40; In San
Francisco $3.50, against her $500; In
Seattle $l,050. against her $3.50. And
so on. There isn't a city In the
United States where the minimum
wage of an elementary woman teach
er EQUALS the minimum wage OF an
iron molder: by which you will see
that it is more important to mold
iron than to mold brains.