North Carolina is now ranked 43rd in the nation for average teacher pay. The state fell 5 places in the latest annual report from the National Education Association.
The state's average salary for a public school teacher is about 14-thousand dollars less than the national average, and ranked below bordering states.
Bryan Proffitt is Vice President of the North Carolina Association of Educators.
He said, "If we want for our kids to have the highest quality people in the school building with them every single day, then we need to shift our state's priorities."
State Senate leader Phil Berger's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.