Must Read: Public special ed employee has $0 paycheck after health insurance deductions

[onehandle]

A Special Education Worker Talks About Empty Paychecks, Organizing

In a country where jobs are at a premium, having one in a public school that allows you to buy into a medical benefit package is a pretty good deal, right? Sure, if you overlook that paying for the benefits and taxes on the salary may leave you with a net of zero take home pay. It’s an all-too-common story and it’s the one facing Kathy Meltsakos, a special education paraprofessional working in northeast Massachusetts, hard by the Atlantic. She lives on the same street she grew up on and has worked the schools she attended years ago, bringing a deep knowledge of the generations of people living in and around her town into that work.

Education support professionals like Meltsakos and the rest of America’s workers are doing their best to weather today’s economy. But consider the numbers. Initially earning $13.74 for a 35-hour week with the Pentucket schools, Meltsakos paid 20 percent of her insurance, which was manageable, and she did that for 10 years until laid off in June 2010. While looking for work she received unemployment benefits.

“I was placed at the bottom of the scale at $10.74 an hour for a 30-hour week. After taxes, I paid 60 percent of my medical insurance. My pay stubs from February to June 24 (the end of the school year) show no net take home pay since February. Oh – and the insurance rates went up in May.” By April she was frustrated with no take home pay and knew she had to get a second job. “My husband is doing everything he can but we have kids in college and of course the regular bills to pay. I tried a pizza shop, then found work with a discount store, twenty hours a week during school, and a few more now that school is out. They pay a little more per hour but no benefits.” For the summer she landed a job with special ed kids for 20 hours a week at $14 an hour.

“I’m not the only ESP worker in the position of working two or three jobs to try to make ends meet,” Meltsakos said. “We are not looking for a free ride. But we have to question a system that forces workers in any profession to stitch together several pay streams to make ends meet. It can get debilitating. I check my life at the school door and am upbeat and positive because some days, I’m the only happy face those kids see. What is that worth to society?” Meltsakos is not shy discussing economic facts, having been a local Massachusetts Teacher Association leader for 11 years. She served on her local bargaining team three times and currently serves as an MTA board member representing ESPs and teachers at the state level. She is also a graduate of the 2011 NEA ESP Leaders for Tomorrow program.

http://www.educationvotes.nea.org/2011/07/20/a-special-education-worker-talks-candidly-about-empty-paychecks-organizing/

[MichiganVote]

K&R

[Snoutport]

1. The EA's at my building, after they got two pay cuts and had to cough up for more insurance

are bringing home $134 a week. The superintendents should go to jail, if you ask me.

[mike_c]

2. yes, teachers and other public employees are SO overpaid....

This is surreal. This is what corporate business wants for all of us-- the bare minimum necessary to survive so we can work until we drop, barely making ends meet.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

3. This is inexcusable. n/t

[anarch]

4. so, with the insurance rates up just a little bit more,

will she get a bill every two weeks instead of a check? God bless America.

[area51]

41. +1

That's what I was wondering. This is insanity. Literally working for insurance, and now there wouldn't even be money for co-pays and deductibles. Since both parties are so enamored of these insurance companies, and the insurance cos. have proven over and over that they exist to kill people and make money for themselves, nationalize the mofos now!

[Stinky The Clown]

5. Amazing. And this is tolerated in this country now.

[anarch]

6. hey, she has a job...she should be happy

it really is amazing. We live in a true dystopia.

[canaar]

14. It's what God intended.

Halleilujah and pass me another one of those delicious tax breaks.

[RagAss]

19. LOL !

[RaleighNCDUer]

7. Bah. Just another one of those teachers, milking the system. nt

[Tatiana]

8. SHAMEFUL! It is shameful that we are seeing such heightened destruction of public

education workers under a Democratic administration.

If you work full-time period, you should be able to take care of your health care needs and have a decent standard of living.

But they say public education workers make so much money. Yeah right.

What a tragedy. People like these are there for the children, not just a paycheck. There is no way they should be treated this way.

[marasinghe]

23. there was a time in the world - a long gone mythical age, when i was a kid -

when Teachers were due the same respect & treatment given to Parents.
now, society reserves that privilege for bankers, businessmen, & the wealthy.
progress.
:puke:

[TalkingDog]

9. 10 downvotes? Holy Cow!

What don't you find worthy in this story?

Special Needs kids?
Insurance Premiums eating up paychecks?
Massachusetts is evil? (Sarcasm FYI)
Unions?
Paraprofessionls?
NEA?

What's the problem with you people?

[Stinky The Clown]

11. 'mazing, innit?

:nod:

[Lorien]

16. Complete lack of a soul is my guess. nt

[Ignis]

48. +1

[sulphurdunn]

43. While all humans

are members of the same biological species, there are several psychological sub-species. The main taxonomical distinction is between those who have hearts and those who don't.

[jberryhill]

10. Yes, but that's a cool $0 in pre-tax income!

[unblock]

18. look like she still have to pay taxes on $0.82

[jberryhill]

22. You expect her not to share the sacrifice?

What are you, a communist?

[dana_b]

50. I almost laughed at that

if it weren't so sad/maddening, I woud have.

[jberryhill]

54. If she were a man, though, it would be $1 instead of $ .82

[dana_b]

55. okay..

you got me to laugh. :)

[larwdem]

12. welcome to the new america

[proud patriot]

13. I'm a paraprofessional also, Here is a link my speech

as read to the school board. We have since Bargained our contract and signed a new one. My health Insurance went from free to now casting $300 per month for my family's coverage.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9305846

We who care for children are PROFESSIONALS. We Are Educated.
We love what we do. Many are having to choose other options because
Our Children are not Our Priority as a Society it's a Scoorge upon our nation .

[KamaAina]

15. Nice to know Romneycare is working out so well for her

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

[knitter4democracy]

17. Parapros in our district don't get insurance.

I sure didn't. We're not eligible. At least I got actual paychecks, though. Yikes.

[Lucian]

20. And yet we're going to sit on our hands and put up with this BS.

I want change, and want it now.

[chervilant]

53. Me, too!

How long are we going to whinge on this and other 'left-leaning' blogs about the ignorance, stupidity and utter incompetence of the sock puppets du jour infesting our nation's political offices?

We can ill afford all of these lovely pity parties, wherein we post clever and witty bon mots slamming pathetic people. Our global economy is crumbling faster than an oreo cookie in a toddler's mouth. Earth is SCREAMING in agony from the multiple burdens of our unfettered hubris. An astonishing number of our nation's depressed and disenfranchised children report that they don't expect to see their elder years!

And, yet, so very many of us remain ensconced in front of our puters, in our comfortably air-conditioned homes, pouring out our anger and angst through our keyboards. (Oh, lest I forget, some of us--NOT me; the luckier ones who still have a job--open our checkbooks and give to 'noble causes.')

Time for change. PAST time for us to get off our collective asses, and hit the streets.

Freedom Plaza, October 6. Please pledge to be there. Work NOW to locate long term parking options and alternate travel routes. Make a list of non-perishable foodstuffs you can use over the long haul. Encourage your friends, neighbors, and fellow activists to be there for the duration. Network with others who've made the pledge. Envision multiple MILLIONS of people in solidarity there. PLEASE, put your time and energy toward this essential goal. We MUST wrest back from the uber wealthy corporatists our media, our politics, OUR LIVES!

[Starry Messenger]

21. k&r

[grahamhgreen]

24. When are the pro-HCR people going to fix HCR, as promised?

[WillyT]

25. HUGE K & R !!!

:mad:

:kick:

[roxiejules]

26. K&R

As teachers across the country are being laid off, new teams of 'talent' coaches and consultants are still being hired and millions of dollars are now earmarked for more and more testing. Taxpayers are getting whole new levels of bureaucracy, whose headcount will probably be hidden at the school level, to obscure the growing expense, as teachers continue bleed from the system and class sizes grow ever larger.

The Billionaire Boys are doing to our schools and children what they are doing to the rest of our country.

[chillspike]

27. Look for a second job?

How does the first one qualify as a "job" when she's not being paid?

[xchrom]

28. Infuriating & disgusting. Nt

[Lucky Luciano]

29. Clearly, she is living high on the hog robbing honest taxpayers.

How many other handouts does she want FFS?!

[NorthCarolina]

30. She can use that $0 income to help cover her copays and deductibles. n/t

[PA Democrat]

31. +1. And that is exactly what the health insurance crooks hope for.

They entice companies, and govt. entities to increase deductibles in return for "lower" premiums knowing that many people won't be able to USE their policies.

[marions ghost]

32. Speechless...

:nuke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ier64Qp80Iw&NR=1

[NBachers]

33. How Uniquely American!

[reformist2]

34. Two words: Price Controls.

[Cobalt Violet]

35. Soon to be all our future. n/t

[Hubert Flottz]

36. How WILL she pay her CoPay?

Meanwhile the CEOs are feeling no pain.

[Smilo]

37. She is far from alone

.... personally for me - with very crappy insurance, I would have been left with $200 - that is why I chose not to take it - so I could actually live.

[myrna minx]

38. She needs to sacrifice more - so hedge fund managers can have 3 homes.

:eyes:

[RainDog]

39. k&r n/t

[Wounded Bear]

40. I got one of those once.....nt

[TxVietVet]

42. Well, welcome to the world brought to you by the conservanazis.

It's a real "f*ck you" world. They don't give a f*ck about workers. Hey, wait a minute, the Democrats are doing the same thing. And, so is Obama.
It's time for a change. A real change.

Organize, organize, organize.

[Dutchmaster]

44. Pullman would be proud.

[caseymoz]

45. People aren't going to take this.

Generations isolated from the realities of widespread poverty and class struggle who have been tranquilized with pop culture are getting a rude awakening. I'm interested to see if or how long they are going to tolerate this system and be mollified by excuses or calls for "sharing the burden" with the wealthy, who, like themselves until recently, have no idea what the burden of poverty is.

When poverty is no longer an abstract concept, abstract concepts explaining it away, making light of it, downplaying it, distracting from or vilifying, all become morally and emotionally destitute.

Revolution? Impossible to predict.

[pam4water]

46. What will happen if Obama drops the tax deduction for medical insurance? Will she then owe taxes

after getting a pay check?

[bvar22]

47. Thank GAWD it passed!!!

This IS "The Uniquely American Solution!"

The clock is ticking on the BIG Time Bomb,
and is set to explode in 2014
when The Mandate kicks in.





Cherish your memories, SUCKERS!
because we're TAKING everything else!
Hahahahahahaha!

[progressoid]

49. Yes, thank GAWD indeed.

:grr::grr::grr:
:grr::grr::grr:
:grr::grr::grr:

[dana_b]

51. she accomplishes one of the most

important jobs in the world, imo, and this is how she is treated. no more words.

[Dont call me Shirley]

52. That's called SLAVERY!