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Do Teachers Really Leave for Higher Paying Jobs in Alternative Occupations?

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  • Scafidi Benjamin

    (Georgia College and State University)

  • Sjoquist David L.

    (Georgia State University)

  • Stinebrickner Todd R.

    (University of Western Ontario)

Abstract

There is a common perception that teacher attrition is driven in large part by the allure of higher paying jobs in alternative occupations. However, little is known about what teachers do when they leave teaching. We examine the extent to which teachers leave teaching for higher paying jobs by merging several years of administrative teacher records from the education system in Georgia with salary information from the Georgia Department of Labor. We find strong evidence that very few of those who leave teaching take jobs that pay more than their salary as teachers.

Suggested Citation

  • Scafidi Benjamin & Sjoquist David L. & Stinebrickner Todd R., 2006. "Do Teachers Really Leave for Higher Paying Jobs in Alternative Occupations?," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 6(1), pages 1-44, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejeap:v:advances.6:y:2006:i:1:n:8
    DOI: 10.2202/1538-0637.1604
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    Cited by:

    1. Marchand, Joseph & Weber, Jeremy, 2017. "The Local Effects of the Texas Shale Boom on Schools, Students, and Teachers," Working Papers 2017-12, University of Alberta, Department of Economics, revised 31 Jan 2019.
    2. Gregory Gilpin, 2009. "Reevaluating the Effect of Non-Teaching Wages on Teacher Attrition," CAEPR Working Papers 2009-022, Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Department of Economics, Indiana University Bloomington.
    3. Reagan A. Baughman & Kristin E. Smith, 2012. "Labor Mobility Of The Direct Care Workforce: Implications For The Provision Of Long‐Term Care," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(12), pages 1402-1415, December.
    4. Jonah E. Rockoff, 2008. "Does Mentoring Reduce Turnover and Improve Skills of New Employees? Evidence from Teachers in New York City," NBER Working Papers 13868, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Varga, Júlia, 2013. "A közalkalmazotti béremelés hatása a tanárok pályaelhagyási döntéseire [The effect of a public-sector pay increase on teachers attrition]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(5), pages 579-600.
    6. Gilpin, Gregory A., 2011. "Reevaluating the effect of non-teaching wages on teacher attrition," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 598-616, August.
    7. Joseph Marchand & Jeremy G. Weber, 2020. "How Local Economic Conditions Affect School Finances, Teacher Quality, and Student Achievement: Evidence from the Texas Shale Boom," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 39(1), pages 36-63, January.
    8. Hanushek, Eric A., 2011. "The economic value of higher teacher quality," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 466-479, June.
    9. Jan Ondrich & Emily Pas & John Yinger, 2008. "The Determinants of Teacher Attrition in Upstate New York," Public Finance Review, , vol. 36(1), pages 112-144, January.
    10. Vera Celia P., 2019. "A Structural Approach to Assessing Retention Policies in Public Schools," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 19(3), pages 1-26, July.
    11. Daniel Aaronson & Katherine Meckel, 2009. "How will baby boomer retirements affect teacher labor markets?," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 33(Q IV), pages 2-15.
    12. Arias J. J. & Scafidi Benjamin, 2009. "When Does Teacher Licensure Make Sense?," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 9(1), pages 1-46, February.
    13. Dora Gicheva, 2022. "Altruism and Burnout: Long Hours in the Teaching Profession," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 75(2), pages 427-457, March.
    14. Hirsch, Barry & Manzella, Julia, 2014. "Who Cares – and Does It Matter? Measuring Wage Penalties for Caring Work," IZA Discussion Papers 8388, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Fraenkel, Rebecca Cannon, 2022. "Local labor markets and job match quality: Teachers," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    16. Matthew M. Chingos & Martin R. West, 2010. "Do More Effective Teachers Earn More Outside of the Classroom?," CESifo Working Paper Series 2996, CESifo.
    17. Vera, Celia Patricia, 2018. "A structural approach to assessing retention policies in public schools," MPRA Paper 90657, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Eric Hanushek & Steven Rivkin, "undated". "Constrained Job Matching: Does Teacher Job Search Harm Disadvantaged Urban Schools?," Discussion Papers 09-011, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
    19. Vera, Celia Patricia, 2013. "Career Mobility Patterns of Public School Teachers," MPRA Paper 49340, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Carroll David & Parasnis Jaai & Tani Massimiliano, 2021. "Why do women become teachers while men don’t?," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 21(2), pages 793-823, April.
    21. Eric A. Hanushek & Steven G. Rivkin, 2010. "The Quality and Distribution of Teachers under the No Child Left Behind Act," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(3), pages 133-150, Summer.
    22. Wiswall, Matthew, 2013. "The dynamics of teacher quality," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C), pages 61-78.
    23. Ying Liu & Yongping Yu & Xiaoying Zeng & Yufei Li, 2023. "Linking Preschool Teachers’ Pay Equity and Turnover Intention in Chinese Public Kindergartens: The Mediating Role of Perceived Organizational Support and Job Satisfaction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-17, September.
    24. Patrick Walsh, 2014. "When Unified Teacher Pay Scales Meet Differential Alternative Returns," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 9(3), pages 304-333, July.
    25. Boyle Glenn, 2008. "Pay Peanuts and Get Monkeys? Evidence from Academia," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 8(1), pages 1-26, July.

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