Illinois Valley Times

An Illinois state senator wants to remove a barrier that limits how many hours a retired teacher can work as a substitute without harming their retirement and bolster the availability of instructors. 

Sen. Patrick Joyce (D-Essex) said he is advancing a bill to address the state's current teacher shortage as Illinois schools reopen for in-person learning.

"To eliminate the teacher shortage in Illinois, I advanced a plan out of the Senate today to increase the number of hours a retired teacher may work without impairing their retirement status," Joyce wrote in an April 22 Facebook post.

Illinois law currently allows retired teachers to serve substitutes for no more than 120 days or 600 hours after they retire. Senate Bill 1989 would change that limit from a lifetime cap to one that renews yearly. Since retired teachers often return to work as substitutes, this would increase the number of available qualified instructors.

Under the legislation, retired teachers work as substitutes for 100 days or 500 hours each school year beginning as early as July 1, 2023.

“The time is now to address the teacher shortage in Illinois,” Joyce said. “This legislation will allow school districts to increase the pool of qualified substitute teachers while allowing former teachers to maintain their retirement status.”

The bill recently cleared the Senate and now advances to the House for further consideration.