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Economic Policy Institute
@epi.org

NEW: Teachers earned 25.2% less than comparable college graduates in 2025, according to our new report with @cepr.org. This decades-long teacher pay penalty has taken a heavy toll on public education. 1/4

Economic Policy Institute
@epi.org

👉 Teacher pay has fallen further and further behind. After accounting for inflation, public school teachers' weekly wages FELL 6.2% over the past three decades, while wages for other college graduates rose 28.8% over the same period. 2/4

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Economic Policy Institute
@epi.org

Teachers were paid less than other college graduates in every state, with relative teacher pay gaps ranging from 10.4% in Rhode Island to 40.7% in Colorado. 👉 The teacher pay penalty was at least 25% in 25 states. Visit the report for an interactive map (Figure D) to see your state's gap. 3/4

Economic Policy Institute
@epi.org

Competitive pay is necessary to attract and retain qualified teachers. Reversing these trends will require targeted, sustained investment in public education at the local, state, and federal levels.

epi.orgThe teacher pay penalty remained high in 2025: Teachers and students nationwide are still paying the price of decades of neglectKey takeaways: In 2025, the teacher pay penalty stood at an estimated 25.2%—meaning teachers earned about a quarter less than comparable college graduates in other professions. That's a slight improve...