IEA: Retirement age forcing teachers out of Illinois

Decatur, Ill (WAND) – The Illinois Education Association (IEA) is supporting a bill in the Illinois Senate to reduce the retirement age for teachers as a way to keep them from leaving the profession.

The General Assembly passed a measure a decade ago requiring teachers who were hired after 2011 to work until age 67 before they can collect full retirement benefits. IEA President Kathi Griffin says the age requirement forces teachers to either find another career or leave the state.

The measure, SB 2024, is sponsored by State Senator, (D) Chicago.

Illinois school districts have been battling teacher and personnel shortages since 2017. Since the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020 an estimated 12,000 teachers have retired in Illinois.