CIVITAS EXPOSES OUTRAGEOUS UNION SALARIES PAID BY NCAE.

May 10, 2011

As the average teacher salary declines and the state is adopting large budget cuts to education – one group is thriving in this dire economic situation. It may (or may not) surprise you that group is the North Carolina Association of Educators (NCAE).  A group whose mission is to defend and advocate for the interests of educators in North Carolina, seems to have its priorities in disarray. The Civitas Institute released a report last week that tracked the average salary and compensation of NCAE employees, and discovered that NCAE salaries for top executives have increased at more than double the rate of the average teacher salary.   After releasing this report the NCAE launched direct protests against Civitas.  Civitas staff and volunteers attended an NCAE rally at the capitol last week to hand out copies of this research to teachers and other attendees. Union representatives were not pleased. They had State Capitol police and Raleigh police tell us to leave the Bicentennial Mall (public property) and stay on the sidewalks. We complied and handed out the flyers as people walked by only to see those people stopped by union employees who ripped the materials out of teachers’ hands or demanded that they discard any information provided by Civitas. Take a moment to watch Civitas video of the rally here. In 2009, the NCAE collected more than $8.8 million in membership dues.  $7.9 million was spent on salary and compensation, which is 72 percent of total expenditures.  With 135 employees, that is significant overhead.  The Executive Director reaped Compensation totaling $229,120, to see other executive compensation click here. Other information included in the report was the NCAE’s political contributions since 2008.  In 2009 the NCAE made over $700,000 in lobbying and political expenditures.   The NCAE also made direct contributions to candidates totaling $172,950, of which 98.6 percent went to Democratic candidates and only 1.3 percent to Republican candidates.  The NCAE along with the NEA also contributed more than $1.8 million to Bev Perdue’s 2008 Governor’s race. It seems in the NCAE’s case, actions speak louder than words.   Civitas in its mission to educate and empower the citizens of North Carolina is working to make this information available to the public.  Please help support our research and allow us to continue to expose union corruption. Click here to make a tax-deductable contribution. The Civitas Institute accepts no government money and is fully funded by the generous support of people like you. Sincerely, P.S. All contributions made to the Civitas Institute are tax-deductible.  If you prefer you can mail your contribution to: Civitas Institute 100 S. Harrington St. Raleigh, NC 27603 or call us at 919.834.2099.  . Civitas Institute <marianne.suarez@nccivitas.org>