Teacher union report: Average Florida teacher salary slips to 2nd-lowest nationally

Despite a vaunted investment of more than $4 billion to increase educators’ salaries since 2020, the state is now almost dead last in state-by-state comparisons of average teacher pay, according to the National Education Association.

The Florida Education Association (FEA) highlighted the new rankings Tuesday, from a National Education Association (NEA) report earlier this month. It shows Florida’s average public school teacher pay dropped from No. 48 nationally to No. 50 among states and Washington, D.C. Only West Virginia ranked lower than the Sunshine State, the report says.

The report shows that while Florida’s average starting teacher salary is16th among the 50 states and Washington at $47,178, the average teacher salary is not nearly above average nationally. The report shows overall average teacher salaries clock in at $53,100, with the average teacher pay overall just shy of $6,000 more than new teachers.