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This question is about what a substitute teacher does and substitute teacher.
Are substitute teachers in demand?
Yes, substitute teachers are in demand. The need for substitute teachers was already an issue before the pandemic, and now it has only worsened. In the face of COVID-19, many schools now grapple with a labor shortage, and many substitutes may be wary of returning to in-person instruction.
Another factor driving the shortage of substitute teachers is that it is not seen as a prestigious profession. Both the low pay and a lack of benefits (e.g., health insurance) turns off many qualified people from substitute teaching, especially as wages rise in other sectors and competition for workers increases as many industries deal with staffing shortages.
State and local laws may make it difficult or impossible for retired teachers to work as substitutes while still collecting retirement benefits.
Not to mention that fewer new teachers are graduating from teacher prep programs, which further constrains the pool of newly-minted educators who normally would work as substitutes before finding full-time teaching work.
On a brighter note, the shortage has become so acute that substitute teachers, who have historically earned low pay, suddenly find themselves on the beneficial side of the supply-demand equation. In some cases, that has led to a rise in wages and steady work.
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