Connecticut union organizers are working to get pension plans for paraeducators.
In recent years, they have won a flurry of benefits from organizing but getting a pension plan has not been easy, since a General Assembly bill to create one has not made it through the Appropriations Committee in three years.
Michael Barry, campaign coordinator for the Connecticut Coalition for Retirement Security, pointed out most paraeducators have to work second jobs to afford everyday life, so their salaries make it hard to save for retirement.
“You can’t put money into a 401(k) when you’re barely making ends meet and paying your rent and keeping the car going,” Barry emphasized. “Connecticut is like most places in New York, you really need a car. So, that’s a whole other expense.”
Hispanics, Latinos make up more than 16% of education paraprofessionals
A 2021 Connecticut Paraeducator Advisory Council study found most paraeducators make less than $19 an hour and one in five makes $13 to $16 an hour. The state is already grappling with a shortage of teachers and aides.
A Connecticut Education Association survey last year found 69% of school districts reporting job openings for paraeducators.
Another way to help paraeducators would be to raise the minimum wage, more than it was already increased this year. The latest ALICE update shows the number of “asset-limited, income-constrained, employed” families grew 13% in 2022, the largest jump in a decade.
Barry argued creating a living wage would be beneficial.
“Rents are outrageous now. You know, rent, utilities are bad,” Barry outlined. “Eversource keeps raising rates and it’s just terrible. You know, just being able to survive, you need to be making a decent amount of money.”
Connecticut’s minimum wage is a little over $16 an hour, or an annual income of around $34,000. ALICE data found 38% of teachers’ aides were living below the ALICE threshold.
Cover Photo: ALICE data from the United Way found between 2019-2022, the median hourly wage for teaching assistants in Connecticut was $23.38. (Adobe Stock)
Disclosure: The National Public Pension Coalition contributes to the Public News Service for reporting on Budget Policy and Priorities, Livable Wages/Working Families, and Social Justice.
CT paraeducators organize to get a living wage was first published on Public News Service, and was republished with permission.
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