Diaz says union falsely claims Florida’s teacher shortage is ‘getting worse’ despite vacancies declining

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. said that Florida has a total of 4,776 teacher vacancies, an 8% decline compared to the start of the 2022-23 school year.

The Florida Education Association, a statewide teachers union, told Newsweek that Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican legislature are enacting policies that increase the shortage and grow the problem.

The association’s president, Andrew Spar, went so far as to say that their numbers from January show the “worst teacher and staff shortage we’ve ever seen in the state of Florida.”

However, Diaz announced that the real vacancy number is more than 2,000 less than what the union reported.

Diaz added that the average rate of vacancies per school was 1.28, compared to the national average of 2 – a decrease from the state’s 1.4 at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year.

“It has been a top priority of the Governor, the Florida Legislature and the Department of Education to recruit high-quality teachers to fill our classrooms,” Diaz said in a press release. “It is clear from the nearly 10% decline in teacher vacancies reported today that their hard work has paid off.”

Regionally, the state saw large decreases in vacancies with Central Florida counties experiencing a 31% drop and Panhandle counties seeing a 38% drop.

The press release praised DeSantis’ leadership and execution, particularly in regards to the education bill, HB 1.

The legislation lengthens temporary teacher certifications, provides $1.1 billion in teacher raises and implements a recruitment bonus for retired military veterans and first responders who noose to enter the teaching profession.

“Contrary to the lies from @FloridaEA, the teacher recruitment programs championed by @GovRonDeSantis are helping to alleviate the nationwide teacher shortage,” Diaz said on social media.

The governor also signed HB 1035, also known as the “Teachers Bill of Rights,” in an effort to give educators more power over any illegal or unlawful school orders that the district implemented.

“Teachers have a right to teach in an orderly and safe classroom,” DeSantis said during the bill signing in May.

”So that Teachers Bill of Rights is probably the most significant such piece of legislation anywhere in the country.”