Teachers Facing Layoffs & Job Insecurity
Educators are experiencing significant job insecurity and instability, often facing non-renewal or cuts despite positive student outcomes and requests for support. This is compounded by district-level issues, administrative targeting, and challenging student populations, leading to high turnover and emotional distress. The lack of support and unpredictable nature of employment creates a stressful and unsustainable environment.
SOURCES (60)
“That's crazy. Before I retired I was trying to talk sense to the new employees. They were voting for a higher starting salary with fewer pay steps and outrageous insurance premiums. Luckily I was grandfathered at $125 a month for me and the family for…”
“Not necessarily. A lot of districts pay well, and there is the option to make more working summers. Also, many districts have excellent benefits that would cost thousands more out of pocket in another field. Teaching jobs also tend to be very secure after 5 years or so at a school, when a person has tenure and seniority. Of course this varies depending in what district one works. Im lucky to be in one with a strong union, and where there are a lot of options to work. I moved around a bit until I”
“The thing is you don't. If this job was supported you wouldn't have to go through the bad. It's a leadership issue, not a personal issue.”
“I'm going back again for another school year. Someone lovingly tell me (and probably other teachers) why. submitted by /u/BlairBlackMX [link] [comments]”
“This may not be the right place to ask but I figured perhaps some people here might have some info. Back in April, May I had accepted a LTS position from the start of the school year through November. Just recently I was offered a FTE at a different school that I'd rather take instead. I can't seem to find any definitive information on if there's be repercussions if I were to leave the former offer. Any additional information you can share, including who I could maybe reach out to to”
“Hey guys, 30 year old teacher here that’s been feeling kinda stuck for about a year now in my life and was just hoping to get some advice (if any) if anyone’s been in a similar situation. I’ve been teaching for about 10 years now. Love teaching and very much enjoy what I do. However, I’ve been kind of struggling with progression in finances since I teach in a pretty expensive cost of living area. I love the area and have family near by, but would really like to own a house someday. So I’ve been”
“In my dictrict teachers get moved to a new school every seven to ten years. A teacher can't stay in the same school for more than a decade.”
“15 years in k-5 education and now struggling to find any work. submitted by /u/New-D84 [link] [comments]”
“As the title says. I'm looking at the Mental Health Practitioner role in Victorian schools, in Australia, to be exact. Sorry, struggling to get up to 150 characters. submitted by /u/songoftheshadow [link] [comments]”
“Hello all, I’m about to start year 6 of teaching and have a newly one year old son. I am also a single mom, who lives with my parents. As a single woman before having my son, my teaching salary didn’t seem that big of a deal. I could afford my share of rent, could pay my bills, could spend some money on fun, and put some in savings. This year I’ll be making more than I have previously (around 54k) but in no world can I ever move out of my parent’s house now that I’m a single mom. How are y’all m”
“When I saw OP write “the heinous crime of being trans”, I just assumed that the school community found out OP was trans and then vilified them for it. That does not mean that OP was bringing sexuality into the classroom. OP simply existing, in the same way as any cisgendered man or woman, is not bringing their “sexuality into work”.”
“To add, most teaching contracts state layoff and/or RIF procedures. My current district gave everyone a printout of every teacher’s rank in the district by length of service.”
“It’s not. There’s cuts usually every year. School populations fluctuate. Positions are redundant”
It’s considering one of the most stable careers you can pursue. 😭
“Where I am in central Maryland, layoffs are relatively rare. I think I've only seen one in my district in a thirty-year career. It was probably for a similar number of teachers, and they were all first-years. The public schools are in a tough spot financially right now. You have a drop in student enrollments combined with reduced Federal funding and a loss of Covid funds. I think as a prospective math educator, you will be okay, but there may be a bump or two on your career path.”
It's just been a week in my employment, I hope it'll sting less with time
“Is year 3 usually a rough year for a lot of teachers? I was thinking once I was past those first 2, it would start easing up but 3 was like the gift that kept on giving.”
“Today, I lost my teaching job as well as most of my coworkers. I knew this was coming for days, but still feel like I got knocked out. BUT I'm so excited to hear all of your wins and funny moments this year. submitted by /u/27lilypop27 [link] [comments]”
“What’s the salary difference between the two jobs? Definitely factor that in, not just stress level alone.”
“Hello. This post shares a lot of info and I feel like I'll delete later but for now please entertain me. I am frustrated to be stuck in a state where most districts do not have unions, no salary scales, and no pay increases beyond inflation. We are a two teacher family so there is no "higher job" in the family (most of our relatives who are teachers have a six-figure spouse in other fields). I have lived in four other states and moved a lot. I daydream about two scenarios moving ba”
“I live in Florida and taught 8th grade for four years. I left when I wasn't handling the behavior, micromanagement, censorship, etc well and I was just angry all the time. In the last year, I've been working for a marketing company and I've been feeling just... Disconnected I guess. It's soulless work. Everything I do is for someone else's bottom line and I don't see the good. We used to work with writers, and the company is looking forward to phasing them out in preferen”
“I taught for 7 years. I got out because I needed to make a living. After 7 years at alternative charter, I broke 40k in a hcol area. Sometimes it’s the career change.”
“I’ll be going into my tenth year of teaching this fall. My partner and I have had some discussions regarding me continuing with my career as it stands. I have supportive admin, good students, and I do actually enjoy my job for the most part. I’m just sick and tired of living paycheck to paycheck. Even with a second part-time job, it’s still barely anything. It’s getting to a point where my partner and I are wanting to do more, like go on vacations in the summer. But, I can’t afford it. If we go,”
“Hi everyone! For context this past year I was a first year first grade public school teacher in Massachusetts. I was in a one year position covering a maternity leave but the person I was covering isn’t returning so I was able to return next year and will be doing so. While I did not have any formal observations this year from my AP, my principal mentioned when giving me the job offer back in April that I was indeed evaluated, so I will be on my second year in terms of tenure and pay scale. I ju”
“I'm sure I'll massage what I have, but so far in my teaching career the normal was to finish a day and then have nothing for the next day and have to put it together that night and the next morning.”
“In my district, evaluations impact our PAY. There are no bonuses. We don't have automatic steps, we move up when we accumulate enough points based on our evaluations.”
“Good and congrats! It sounds like a I need to move to a district more like this to be a teacher! Wish you were paid more though!”
“For the first three years of teaching, I was pink slipped, then rehired each year. One year, my principal handed me my notice at the same time she handed me my new offer. My admin always told me that they were waiting for final budgets, and they wanted me back, but it was only fair to release me if they couldn’t guarantee a position. Did they ever post your job? It sounds like your admin handled this situation poorly and there was always an intent to keep you. I’m surprised a more seasoned colle”
“Well, it can't happen to you unless it gets bad. Tenured staff at my former school were cut along with the untenured just because that's how deep the cuts went.”
“I need to know if I did the right thing. For context I completed my first year of teaching in may. I student taught at this school and got a job there. I was ecstatic. I loved my job. I worked so hard through student teaching to make the right impression, to land the job, and to feel comfortable. I got great evaluations (especially for a first year) and LOVED my coworkers. The day before spring break I got pink slipped. I was DEVASTATED ( it was also my birthday lol) I had worked so hard all yea”
If I do not get an offer, I will sub. But it is way too early to give up.
“My ex-husband filed for our marriage to be annulled after I had been offered the job, and things got a little out of hand during that process. So the school decided to rescind my offer since he was a returning teacher there.”
“For all teachers, please tell me if this is normal behavior of a school district and that’s why I can’t get another job. Last year was my first year as a teacher. I applied around and got a job as an upper elementary grade teacher at a charter school. (The only reason I applied to this position was because relatives of mine had helped start up the school a long time ago and their kids had gone there). I decided to accept the position because it was the grade I wanted and had worked with through”
“I was non-renewed last school year. I teach Spanish, and am a 6th year teacher. I was offered a position at a school and had accepted it but hadn’t signed my contract yet. Thought I was good to go but because of reasons the school decided to rescind their offer on the Friday before the Monday I was supposed to come in to sign my contract. By that point the summer hiring season was really over for the area. I applied to the few open positions and only got one interview but no offer. Now I’m stuck”
“Is there another career you're going to pivot to? Are you going to sub? Are you going to keep applying throughout the year? submitted by /u/JimCap5 [link] [comments]”
“Has anyone here ever taken an extended break from teaching? I'm not talking just the usual summer vacations, but maybe a semester or even a full year but a full school year, almost like a sabbatical? I've only been teaching for three years, but this past school year was pretty brutal. I won't get into all the details, but it's left me feeling completely drained. Plus the drama of dealing with admin and parents. I worked at a private school these 3 years, and was applying to publi”
“So I work at a public school in a non-union state. Pay is one of the highest in the region which is nice. Normally we have 5-6 preplanning days. 60% of that is usually meetings to go over changes and required first of the year paperwork crap and one half day where they bus everyone to an arena to go “ra-ra-ra” over the district and spend a bunch of money on a thing that should have been an e-mail. This year they’ve added THREE professional development days on top of the six days scheduled. WHY?!”
“I’m financially stable and very well educated. I coach in the afternoon and nights. I’m excellent at my coaching job; and think skills could cross over to teaching. I’ve been considering subbing to take on some more paying hours. Would anyone mind sharing some positives and negatives? submitted by /u/drowninginfishtacos [link] [comments]”
“Hi everyone, I’m a Communication Arts/Literature with a secondary education licensure (English teacher for 5th grade). I wanted to make this post for a long time. I haven’t told any of my family the way I feel… I feel like such a fraud. I love writing and I went into teaching because I love children. I’ve been a babysitter all my life and I’ve worked 5 years at a camp for the specific grade I want to teach (5th). Like the title says, I’m a senior in college. I feel like a fraud because I haven’t”
“Worked at a renaissance charter (a public school taken over by a charter- but still for the past 11 years - middle school. The climate and culture of many Philly schools varies by leadership. Kids are going to be kids. If you have good classroom management you can survive. There are many hidden gems in the district. If I'm not mistaken most if not all are title 1 schools. From what you are saying, the Vegas system has many of the same issues that the school district does - chronic absenteeis”
“I started teaching in Fall of 2022! But last year in 2024 I left my previous assignment mid year.. when I returned for the Fall of 2025, I was considered a 3rd Year again! But Technically it should have been year 4! Oh no! The new year is coming up and now I should be a 5th year teacher, but I'm pretty sure I won't be getting the 5th year pay scale! Should I just tell everyone I'm a 4th year teacher instead of a 5th year teacher? I know it's preference, but I'd like to hear t”
“I'm considering leaving my current district for various reasons. However, I saw on my current district's website a posting for a special education inclusion teacher. Do you think I can ask to be moved from self-contained to this position? Likelihood this will happen in any of your experience? I currently teach self contained 6th to 8th grade students with autism and multiple disabilities. I have been in this position for 3 years. I'm in a teacher's union but am about to start yea”
“Teachers have the most transferable skills 😭 like on principle alone, if you can teach you can do anything, but also - public speaking, project management, difficult conversations, etc etc”
“Yes! Also since teachers earn a pension and pensions are property, the other party gets a cut during the divorce. Married 10 years? He gets 5 years of your pension. Social security is different. It’s not property.”
“I worked weekends in retail for a bit as I transitioned into my first full time teaching job. I found it exhausting because I never had a day off, or if I worked only one weekend day I had just one day to do all the chores for the week. It felt like I was living to work as I never had a day I could do fun things, especially if it involved others who had different times off than me. I also find I personally need at least part of the weekend to "recover" from the school week, which I cou”
“I'm using my throwaway account for reasons. I've been applying to job after job only to be rejected without an interview and a few with interviews, telling me they aren't hiring ARL teachers. I NEED to complete the student teaching portion in order to get a professional license. My provisional, in ELA, is almost up. I'm really not sure what to do. My recruiter says I have a shoe in but I don't know. I'm stressing over here. So any advice is good advice. submitted by”
“I know this is long please bear with me. TLDR: new teacher in class with teacher turnover. Targeted by first year principal. Lied to by admin and ultimately terminated even thought class saw significant growth. Unable to teach in district and is struggling to find new placement due to termination. I started teaching in January I came into a poorly performing school. The 4th teacher the class had that year ( a fact I was not informed of) I was hired by the district and from day 1 I felt like my p”
“I recently resigned from my position (elementary in TX) in May after about 7 years in the classroom. I stayed in the same district the entire time. Before being a teacher, I was an instructional aide. I enjoyed my job, but I was getting burnt out the last few years. New principal, new curriculum, more expectations, behaviors… it was just exhausting. I knew I needed a change. I resigned not having a plan in place. I knew I could sub as my last resort. But I couldn’t let myself stay in knowing I’d”
“We have a 10 month contract and can either take it in 12 months or in 10 months. I ALWAYS choose 10 months. Why have the district hold the money for me and THEY get the interest rather than me take my own money, divvy out summer money for myself and ME collect the interest? This isn't hard to do...just set it up so my HYSA automatically takes money every time I get my paycheck. I want control of my own money and collect interest on my own money, not store it in some district holding account”
“Honestly, I’d apply abroad. Find a lower cost of living, live internationally, and maybe take remote classes at an accredited university in Europe for a fraction of the cost. That way you are getting life experience and can have something to put on your resume.”
“Is this real??? Who spends an entire year post grad doing student teaching/getting a teaching credential/masters just to use it for one year???? And the bit about the principal who in retirement only gets $2000 a month????? I'm a retired (2020) career teacher who worked for the public school system for 37 years and retired at age 61. I retired in CA with a pension that provides 90% of my highest year's salary for the rest of my life. Every year I get a 2% increase. I retired making $95,0”
“I think the confusion is around the fact that your post sounds like you're going to teach for one year and then immediately move into a new, higher paying job. Are you already qualified for that better-paying job? If yes, why would you not just go for that job now? And if no, why did you get your license if you have no intention of using it long-term? It just seems like a waste of a TON of work to get where you are now.”
“This is the part that gets me. “Sorry everyone, our principal who just retired was so good, we decided to forgo a principal for a year” 😆”
“& there is likely SEVERAL reasons why that school is under staffed. A big red flag is a school/district that can't retain teachers/staff. The first few years of teaching, especially the first year, is HARD. But ig less so if you don't give af? Good luck. Please post updates come breaks (fall, winter, spring).”