I feel compelled to respond to Ms. Claire Zatorski's editorial printed in the Farmingdale Observer on Jan. 6. Her claim is that the teachers' salaries are at the lowest level in Nassau County. Compared to what? What we need to realize is that there are other components that make up compensation other than cash. Such as:

- Teachers have full medical benefits, yes they pay a small portion, but well below what people pay in the private sector. I, for one, am paying $1,000 per month for my family with no dental or eye coverage.

- That Farmingdale is at the top bracket of residential taxes compared to household income.

- Teachers' pensions are second to none. Most people do not have good company pensions.

- For a full year's salary, teachers are required to work only 182 days not counting sick or personal time off.

- No other profession that I know of has tenure; your job is guaranteed.

- That class sizes are half as large as they were in the '70s when I graduated.

Many people in the community are unaware that most teachers get raises every year. Most people never heard of the step contract. Three quarters of our school budget goes for salaries. Harvey B. Levinson, the chairman of the Nassau County board of Assessors wrote an editorial in the same Observer edition, "If this trend continues, homeowners can expect to see their school property tax obligation double by the end of the decade." That's less than 5 years.

I wholeheartedly agree that we need to avoid the dark days of the past. I remember the faculty started with wearing black on Fridays back then. How can we avoid the past when we see ourselves walking down the same road?

Yes, the teachers need and deserve a contract but I ask all teachers and administrators to stop associating a pay raise with respect. If that can't be accomplished then I ask that the teachers respect the fact that my taxes are too high. That many in the community think teachers are being compensated fairly and want to know why you deserve raises higher than the consumer price index when many of us haven't seen a raise in years. Respect the fact that many think Black Friday is only going down the road you profess you want to avoid and it can only hurt the kids. Respect the fact that this is Farmingdale and not a "rich" district. I would love to move forward with mutual respect and understanding, but it takes two.

George Starkie