Inter-Regional Differences in Teachers’ Wage Before and After Issuing Decrees on Teachers’ Pay Raise

Abstract

An overview of literary sources is used to determine factors that account for differences in the role pay raises play for teachers in different regions. These factors include: regional economic structure; stage of economic development (growth or decline); share of public sector industries in regional economics; specific territorial characteristics resulting in discrepancy between average monthly wages and the real standards of living in regions. The paper has revealed a change to teachers’ pay at different educational levels in regions of Russia between 2011 and the first half of 2013. The level of teachers’ pay shows a trend towards reducing inequalities and polarization in distribution of regions by personal income. At the same time, purchasing power of teachers’ wage is growing more and more heterogeneous across the federal subjects of the Russian Federation. As compared to 2011–2012, when purchasing power of teachers’ wage was at the same level in more than 50% of regions, the first months of 2013 witnessed an increase in the number of levels, as well as in that of regions at different levels. Teachers’ wage varies significantly by its purchasing power across federal subjects that have achieved or almost achieved their teachers’ pay goals. The author proves the need for specific research to discover the role (including psychological one) teachers’ pay raise plays broken down by  the subjects of the Russian Federation.