TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — As Florida schools prepare to open for the new academic year, a growing clash between state officials and teachers unions is intensifying over the issue of teacher pay.
Governor Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas say raises are on the way — but they’re accusing some districts and local unions of stalling.
“Over $100 million additional to what we’ve been doing for teacher pay,” Gov. DeSantis said Wednesday during a roundtable discussion in Tampa. “And I think that’s something that’s really significant.”
However, despite the increase, the state says the money isn’t reaching educators quickly enough.
In a memo sent Wednesday to all 67 Florida school districts, Kamoutsas warned that some local teachers unions are dragging out contract negotiations, delaying raises meant to go into effect this summer. The commissioner said the state will be monitoring compliance and may take action against districts that fail to deliver the funds.
“Delaying these salary increases until the spring does no good for our single parent educators during the holiday season... I will not tolerate union delay tactics,” the letter read.
In a strong rebuke, Kamoutsas added during the roundtable, “We will not take our foot off the gas pedal. We're going to continue to shame these unions, because the world needs to understand what they're doing for teachers."
But Florida’s largest teachers union says the state’s criticisms are misdirected — and the budget itself is to blame.
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In a June 16 statement, the Florida Education Association (FEA) said the state failed to deliver the meaningful investment needed to fix Florida’s chronic education staffing problems.
“$101 million has been allotted for teacher salaries, which would work out to roughly $20 more per paycheck per teacher. This does nothing to move Florida from #50 in the nation for average salary to the top ten,” the union wrote.
FEA President Andrew Spar added that unions aren’t the ones holding things up: “A lot of our unions are at the table right now trying to negotiate. We want to settle quickly as well, but when there's not a lot of money there, it's kind of hard. And what we're pushing districts to do is re-establish priorities so they can actually get more money into the pockets of teachers and staff.”
State Democrats have also been vocal. State Rep. Jervonte Edmonds (D-West Palm Beach) introduced House Bill 1045 earlier this year to raise the minimum teacher salary to match the national average — or exceed it by 10%. The bill failed to advance, but Edmonds says the issue isn’t going away.
“No teacher should have to struggle to make a living. No student should have to lack the tools they need to learn. If we want a stronger future, it starts in our classroom,” Edmonds said.
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Despite the disagreement over policy, state leaders say progress is being made. Florida’s teacher vacancy rate has dropped nearly 30% over the last two years, according to the Department of Education. New recruitment pathways, including programs for military veterans and apprenticeships, are also being expanded.
Still, with the school year just around the corner, the governor made clear that delays in getting pay raises to educators won’t be tolerated.
“We're not going to just sit idly by and let this drag out for months and months on end where the teachers aren't getting what they need,” DeSantis said.
Commissioner Kamoutsas said the state will begin reviewing which districts have implemented the raises and may summon non-compliant ones to appear before the State Board of Education later this year.
Meanwhile, unions say the fight for more comprehensive, long-term education funding is far from over.
