By Brenda Ortega
MEA Voice Editor

MEA member Kim Sandefur normally teaches math to fourth and fifth graders in Comstock, but this week she delivered a lesson to lawmakers in Lansing about why it’s imperative for newly installed House Speaker Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp) to follow the state constitution.

Sandefur detailed crushing new health care cost increases which have begun financially burying public school teachers and other public-sector workers. In December the Legislature passed a measure to address the problem, but Hall is refusing to send the bill to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for a signature.

The State Constitution clearly states: “Every bill passed by the Legislature shall be presented to the governor.”

A resident of Hall’s House district, Sandefur testified Wednesday before the Senate Labor Committee in a hearing to determine how those cost spikes are affecting workers in public-sector jobs, from public school employees to municipal and road workers, police officers, firefighters, nurses, and others.

“Playing party politics with people’s health care and income is deplorable,” Sandefur said. “We are struggling to recruit and retain highly qualified teachers as it is. They should not have to choose between health care and the job that they so love doing.”

Sandefur brings high-level education, training, and experience to her work with students at Comstock STEM Academy. Ultimately the state and its young people will pay the price if skilled educators cannot afford to stay.

“Nobody’s ever gone into education to get rich, but the rewards through student outcomes and decent benefits have helped to offset the pay,” Sandefur testified. “But this year we’re seeing unprecedented indirect pay cuts… The rising cost of their health care insurance is factoring heavily into how much longer veteran teachers will stay in the classroom.”

The Democratic-led Senate has authorized legal action against the Republican-led House. Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids) said if necessary a lawsuit would be filed to force House Bill 6058—along with eight other bills held in limbo—to be sent to the governor.

Leaders in the Senate “will not tolerate illegal partisan games that evade our state constitution,” Brinks said in a floor speech.

HB 6058 would fix Public Act 152, the state law passed in 2011 by a Republican-controlled Legislature and Gov. Rick Snyder, which limited the amount employers could pay toward health care costs for teachers, school support staff, and other public employees.

Because the capped amount has never kept up with annual health care inflation, educators and other workers have been forced to pay an increasing share of their employers’ total health insurance premiums. This year alone, the hard cap increased by 0.2% while actual health care inflation was 15%.

The growing problem is driving staffing shortages in numerous job categories across the public sector in Michigan, testimony revealed in Thursday’s hearing.

Sandefur presented an elementary lesson on subtraction to Labor Committee members. She laid out personal details of her salary and income as an 18-year teacher to show how unaffordable life has become for people who’ve dedicated their careers to public service.

Higher out-of-pocket insurance premiums. Higher out-of-pocket deductibles. Shrinking paychecks.

In the last days of December, Sandefur’s eight-year-old daughter got sick with a fever which was treated at home until the child’s condition worsened, requiring an emergency room visit on New Year’s Day.

After x-rays, lab tests, medicine, her daughter was diagnosed with pneumonia and released with orders for more prescriptions. The financial hit? Sandefur’s out-of-pocket medical costs in January exceeded her monthly income, and the prescription medicine was ineligible for a payment plan.

“As a parent, I was sickened by the fact that insurance costs are now factoring into whether or not I can afford to seek medical treatment for my child,” she said.

The situation is threatening to push out both longtime and early-career educators, agreed MEA member Caryn Leonard, a veteran teacher in Troy who also testified. Suffering from a chronic health condition, Leonard needs a premium health plan to access care she requires to live.

“I have waited 25 years with a master’s (degree)-plus-30 to not stress about my take-home pay and benefits,” Leonard testified. “But instead of that happening, I have been directly impacted by this dramatic rise in health costs that have hit most educators in the state.”

Her biggest concerns lie with the younger teachers. “Nearly every one of the younger 22- to 32-year-old members in my building are already living paycheck to paycheck without even weighing in increased health insurance,” Leonard said.

“One younger member even stated the financial reality is unsustainable, and now new teachers must make a hard choice between their financial stability, their health, or continuing to do what they love—which is teaching. I am here today for those younger teachers.”

MEA members and leaders have been pushing for a legislative solution to the crisis over the past few months with in-person lobbying; phone calls and emails to lawmakers, the House speaker and governor; and speaking to the media.

We must continue to pressure the House leadership to do what’s right—please share your story of how this crisis is affecting you and your family and school district.

MEA member Todd Simon, a social studies teacher from Waverly Schools in Lansing, also brought his 25 years of classroom experience to bear in committee testimony on Thursday. He shared a history lesson with the lawmakers.

At one time in Michigan, young people who could choose more lucrative jobs in the private sector were drawn to careers in education by the promise of decent pay and solid health care and retirement benefits, but now that promise feels more like “a bait and switch,” Simon said.

Rising requirements and challenges of the profession, coupled with lower support, resources, and compensation, “has led to many teachers questioning remaining in the profession, and they’ve been leaving in droves.”

He added, “By the way, when I say teachers, I’m talking about everyone in public service and schools: parapros, lunch service, bus drivers (secretaries, custodians, and more)… I worry about the future of the profession.”

Simon concluded: “I implore the House speaker to pass on House Bill 6058. It was legally passed by the House and the Senate, and the Michigan Constitution requires passed legislation to be sent to the governor for her signature or veto.”

Use this form to share your story and echo this urgent message to Speaker Hall!