Mike Bishop's 5 percent pay cut plan unfair, professors say
Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop proposed a 5 percent pay cut to government employees and educators — including college professors — as part of a series of reforms.
The cut is part of a plan that he said could save the state $2 billion and supplement a $1.6 billion deficit on the horizon for next year. The 5 percent proposal, specifically, would remain level for the next three years.
Many Central Michigan University professors do not see eye to eye with the cut — they believe it is unfair and would hurt Michigan’s education system.
“It seems to me that there are other places in the state to cut that wouldn’t affect teachers’ already-not-very-high pay,” said assistant philosophy and religion professor Andrew Blom.
Janet Lein, professor of foreign languages, literatures and cultures, said decreasing pay for professors and teachers would discourage qualified educators from staying in Michigan.
“You don’t get the best teachers by cutting their salaries,” she said. “Teachers are one of the groups of people in this state that work above and beyond to help students and we don’t get paid any extra for it.”
‘Teachers are our future’
Bishop stated on his Web site that he knows the proposal will generate some hard feelings, but he thinks the cuts are necessary.
He said everyone in Michigan is suffering through hard times and government employees, including himself, need to “make some sacrifices” to best serve the state’s citizens.
In the reforms, Bishop proposes an estimated $615 million in savings by reforming public employee health care and another $70 million to $118 million in savings with police and fire. He identifies upwards of $363 million of possible savings in K-12 school spending, $160 million-plus of savings in Medicaid and $1.2 billion of savings in public employee compensation.
Lein said it is already unfair that teachers make less than most other white-collar employees. Cutting pay, she said, would only heighten the inequality.
Mike Griffin, a secondary education major at CMU, said he would be disappointed if Michigan reduces teachers’ and professors’ salaries.
“It sounds cliché, but teachers are our future,” the Romeo senior said. “And, lately, there’s been so much talk about improving education in Michigan, so why cut teachers’ pay?”
Blom said he believes the cut could be detrimental to the overall quality of education in Michigan.
“Michigan has a long tradition of being one of the states that is more supportive of public education and I think that is an attraction for educators,” he said. “In desperate and hard times teachers and professors have been coming here and I think this could change hurt that.”
-The Associated Press contributed to this report.
