Salary Disparities in NYC’s Early Childhood Education Workforce
Published
February, 2019
The pay disparities experienced by early educators in the Mayor’s signature issue – universal pre-K and now 3 k – are profound and troubling. In fact, CBOs provide the majority of seats for pre-K and teachers in CBOs are paid far less than DOE teachers providing Upk.
Nearly two-thirds of Pre-K for All sites and over half of Pre-K for All seats are at CBOs.
Pre-K teachers at CBOs earn as little as 60% of what Pre-K teachers at DOE schools earn.
A first-year teacher with a Master’s degree at a CBO will make over $17,000 less than what a first-year teacher with a Master’s degree at a DOE school will make. By their eighth year, the teacher at the CBO will make $36,000 less than the teacher at a DOE school.
A first-year teacher with a Bachelor’s degree at a CBO will make nearly $16,000 less than what a first-year teacher with a Bachelor’s degree at a DOE school will make. By their eighth year, the teacher at the CBO will make $33,000 less than the teacher at a DOE school.
The wage disparity is doubly troubling as early childhood teachers in CBOs tend to work more hours than those in the DOE because they provide care to children for up to 10 hours a day and during the summer months.
This disparity in wages has multiple negative ramifications – undercutting program stability, impoverishing a workforce that is primarily Black and Latina women, and destabilizing services offered to children as CBOs experience higher teacher turnover and at times classroom closures.
This infographic has been updated to reflect new UFT contracts that take effect February 13, 2019.
