COVID-19 has impacted the financial well-being of employees across almost every industry, but teachers have been hit particularly hard, driving many to consider leaving the profession entirely.
Twenty-seven percent of teachers are considering leaving their jobs because of COVID-19 challenges like financial insecurity, health and overwork, according to data from Horace Mann Educators, an insurance provider for teachers and educators.
During the pandemic, 74% of teachers say they are struggling financially, with 64% reducing or stopping how much they contribute to their savings, while 29% have done the same for retirement savings and 14% for their health savings accounts, the survey found. Additionally, 77% of educators were spending more time working than they were a year ago — and more than 60% were enjoying their jobs less than they did this time last year.
Read More:
“The pandemic has shone a light on the challenging financial health of many educators,” says Tyson Sanders, vice president of Horace Mann Educators. “Our survey found that close to three-fourths of educators would not say that they’re living comfortably. This is due in part to the unique student loan debt burden educators face and are often expected to have at least one advanced degree, but yet aren’t compensated at the same rate to those in the private sector.”
While other industries have had the option to work remotely during the pandemic, many teachers and educators have been forced to continue working in-person, potentially putting themselves at risk of contracting COVID-19. According to the World Economic Forum, employees in non-health related professions who are at the highest risk of contracting COVID-19 include teachers and bus drivers.
But for many teachers, they have no choice: missing work means missing valuable paychecks.
Read More:
“We are super-exposed to the virus. I see 50 students from different households every day,” says a second grade teacher surveyed by Horace Mann. “If I contract the virus and cannot work, I do not get paid.”
Horace Mann’s report found that nearly half of those surveyed would not be able to immediately pay for an unexpected $1,000 out-of-pocket expense without taking on additional debt or asking a friend or family member for help. In addition, close to half of educators are not confident that their health insurance plans or the employee benefits they receive from their districts will adequately cover medical expenses.
While greater financial support from federal and state governments would help to address these issues, school districts should be providing more robust voluntary benefits to address any benefit gaps, like voluntary supplemental insurance.
“In order to ease the financial burden many educators face, school districts can offer voluntary supplemental insurance benefits that offer educators added comfort when it comes to unexpected, out-of-pocket medical expenses,” Sanders says. “These would include supplemental plans that cover disabilities, accidents, cancer, hospitalizations, and critical illnesses.”
Districts can also offer a variety of programs that support educators, like benefits that help them more fully understand their medical benefits and avoid surprise bills, and educational resources to assist employees with their health and financial questions.
Without these benefits, teachers surveyed by Horace Mann were left with complicated questions: how much can they allow their profession to dictate their well-being?
“It is always in the back of my mind that COVID can cause major changes in my health,” a teacher surveyed by Horace Mann said in the survey. “Should I risk my health for my finances?”
