You don't even have to GoogleOK genius-boy, I'll do your homework for you. In today's lesson you'll learn how even people with double-digit IQs can easily determine a teacher's salary and pension benefits.
CA law states that teacher salary schedules are public documents, so all you have to do is google your school district's salary schedules; it's usually the first hit. Let's use Ventura as an example. Ventura is a nice place.
The lowest starting salary is $44K, the most a teacher will ever make is at 27 years with a Masters degree, and that salary is $95K. You will never get a raise after that, but let's say you gut it out for those last 3 years without a raise and put in 30.
Now you can go to calstrs.com and go to their handy-dandy retirement calculator. Punch in the numbers and you will find out that someone who puts in 30 years and retires at 55 gets about $48K/year; if they put in 30 and retire at 60 they get about $65K/year. BTW there are exactly zero insurance benefits with a STRS retirement. That $65K comes out to about $4450 after taxes per month. Start subtracting for medical insurance, property taxes, homeowners insurance, car payments, etc. and you really don't have a lot of spending money to live on, and if your house isn't paid off, forget it. Retired teachers who only have their STRS do not live well.
Now, let's say you want to buy a year of what's called "permissive service", to retire with 31 "years" of service. There's a calculator for that, too. That year will cost you $30K. Your pension will go up by about $180/month, so it will take over 13 years to break even on that investment.
Nobdy becomes a teacher because it's easy, or for the money.
Transparent California
Search California public, government employee, workers salaries, pensions and compensation
transparentcalifornia.com
Transparent California
Search California public, government employee, workers salaries, pensions and compensation
transparentcalifornia.com
However, when you sort by salary there are some real outliers to what you're talking about
'Teacher' search results | Transparent California
Search California public, government employee, workers salaries, pensions and compensation
transparentcalifornia.com
Ol' Jesus there is making $342k a year