St Martin Federation of Teachers and Support Personnel

06/16/2026

06/10/2026

Today, Louisiana Federation of Teachers President Larry Carter testified before BESE on behalf of more than 18,000 teachers and school employees across our state.

President Carter made it clear: teachers and school employees cannot afford a pay cut.

While acknowledging efforts to continue teachers and school employees stipends for the 2026-2027 school year, he urged BESE and the Louisiana Department of Education to provide full transparency about how proposed funding changes would impact local school districts, students, and school employees.

Louisiana's academic progress has been the result of a team effort. Teachers, paraprofessionals, counselors, nurses, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, specialists, principals, and support staff all play a critical role in student success. Every employee deserves respect and fair compensation.

President Carter called for a district-by-district impact analysis so parents, employees, taxpayers, and community members can understand exactly how funding reductions would affect their schools.

"Louisiana needs a plan that protects compensation, protects students, protects school funding, and moves us toward a permanent salary solution."

Thank you to President Carter for standing up for Louisiana's educators, school employees, and students.

05/29/2026

LFT-Supported Paid Parental Leave Heads to Governor’s Desk

SB 157 has been sent to the governor’s desk, and the Louisiana Federation of Teachers strongly supports it becoming law.

This is an important and long-overdue step for Louisiana’s teachers and school employees, and for the families and students they serve.

For too long, many teachers and school employees have had to choose between caring for a newborn, recovering from childbirth, welcoming an adopted or foster child, grieving a pregnancy loss, or protecting their paycheck.

We heard from members who returned to work before their babies were ready for daycare, who used every day of sick leave for maternity leave and then were docked when their child got sick, and who delayed starting families because they could not afford unpaid or underpaid leave.

Louisiana’s teachers and school employees care for other people’s children every day. When it is time to care for their own families, they should not be left on their own.

SB 157 recognizes that paid parental leave is not just a benefit. It is a recruitment and retention tool.

If Louisiana wants to attract and keep qualified teachers, paraprofessionals, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, custodians, clerical staff, nurses, and other school employees, then we have to respect the realities of their lives and families.

SB 157 establishes the framework for eligible employees to receive six weeks of paid parental leave at 100 percent of base pay for birth, pregnancy loss, adoption, and foster placement, subject to future legislative funding. It also protects employees from being forced to exhaust their sick, annual, or compensatory leave before taking parental leave.

Importantly, SB 157 also creates the Paid Parental Leave for Educators Fund to reimburse school systems for substitute costs associated with paid parental leave. That fund matters.

Creating the policy is the first step, but the legislature must fund it in the future, so this promise becomes a reality in every school system and does not become an unfunded mandate.

This law reflects Louisiana family values in a meaningful way. Supporting families should include supporting the people who serve Louisiana’s children in our public schools every day.

LFT appreciates Senator Jenkins’ continued advocacy on behalf of teachers and school employees. He has sponsored many important bills on behalf of LFT and educators in the past, and SB 157 is another meaningful example of that commitment.

SB 157 is the kind of family-friendly policy that reflects Louisiana’s family values.

LFT appreciates the legislators who chose to step up, support this bill, and recognize that supporting families must include supporting the teachers and school employees who serve Louisiana’s children every day.

We will continue to advocate for the future funding and implementation necessary to make this promise real for school employees across the state.

05/27/2026

https://actionnetwork.org/letters/stop-sb312-hands-off-public-workers-paychecks-2?source=direct_link&

Louisiana legislators are considering a bill that would strictly limit how teachers and essential workers get to spend their hard-earned paychecks. SB312 is now moving through a chaotic Capitol process, and the bill itself has already been surrounded by confusion and mistakes. The people who are tar...

05/21/2026

Louisiana teachers and school employees should not face a reduction in pay while the state has resources available to prevent it.

The Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund exists to help Louisiana navigate critical financial needs, and protecting educator pay should be a priority. Teachers and support staff have continued showing up for students every single day, and lawmakers must do the same for them.

Take action today and tell legislators to use Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund dollars to prevent a pay cut for teachers and school employees.

Sign the letter here:

(https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-legislators-use-the-revenue-stabilization-trust-fund-money-to-prevent-a-pay-cut)

Our educators, students, and schools are worth the investment.

05/18/2026

Do not cut educator pay. Restore the stipend or make it permanent by June 1.

Teachers and school employees showed up to work this morning for students, just as they have always done and just as they will continue to do.

They are doing their jobs.

CA 3 was not a referendum on educators. LFT supported CA 3 after polling our membership because it was the only available path presented to make the current teacher and school employee stipend permanent and prevent a pay cut.

Governor Landry also urged voters to support CA 3 as a way to provide a permanent teacher and school employee pay raise, not another temporary stipend. He recognized that teachers have stood by Louisiana through hurricanes, epidemics, and years of uncertainty.

That commitment should not disappear because voters rejected the mechanism.

CA 3 was complicated. Many voters, including some educators, had concerns about the funding mechanism, the use of constitutionally dedicated education funds, and the confusion surrounding the amendment.

Louisiana’s recent education gains did not happen by accident, and they were not produced by policy alone. They happened because teachers and school employees showed up every day, helped students recover from COVID learning loss, implemented new literacy and numeracy requirements, completed professional development, adapted to new evaluation rubrics, managed increased data and assessment demands, and kept schools running despite rising workloads and discipline challenges.

State leaders can praise the rankings, but they cannot ignore the people who made those rankings possible.

If state leaders are going to celebrate Louisiana’s education gains, the budget should reflect that.

A budget is a statement of priorities. Louisiana continues to protect approximately $7.3 billion in tax incentives while teachers and support staff are facing a pay cut.

Louisiana cannot claim to be serious about attracting businesses that provide livable-wage jobs while cutting the pay of the certified, experienced teachers and school employees who prepare the educated workforce those businesses need.

The legislative session ends June 1. If lawmakers leave Baton Rouge without restoring the stipend or making it permanent, teachers and support staff will receive a pay cut.

No budget should leave the Capitol if it cuts educator pay.

Restore the stipend or make it permanent by June 1.

05/15/2026

Graduation season is more than caps and gowns, it is the result of years of hard work, perseverance, sacrifice, and support from families, educators, and communities.

We celebrate every high school and college graduate stepping into a new chapter.

Whether you are entering the workforce, continuing your education, serving your community, or pursuing your dreams, your future matters and your potential is limitless.

To the teachers, school employees, parents, guardians, and mentors who helped guide these graduates along the way, thank you for the impact you make every single day.

Congratulations to the Class of 2026. Your journey is just beginning, and we cannot wait to see what you accomplish next. 🎓

05/12/2026