Our teachers are, by and large, caring and dedicated professionals who would not normally even consider abandoning their young charges. But they are genuinely angered by what they see as a failure to understand their obvious need.

In defense of the state's position, Gov. Ben Cayetano has published a full-page newspaper advertisement arguing that teachers are not underpaid and that the amount they are holding out for is excessive.

That's an argument made by someone struggling to balance a budget. But it badly misreads public sentiment.

Hawai'i teachers are underpaid, and the state's offer falls short not only of a decent wage, but of fulfilling the public-policy need of making the teaching profession in Hawai'i competitive.

Cayetano says Hawai'i teachers are the 18th highest paid of the 50 states; with the state's latest offer, they'd be 11th. That's misleading. When Hawai'i's high cost of living is factored in, our teachers rank near the bottom.

The evidence is overwhelming that Hawai'i teachers work unusually long hours in stressful and uncomfortable conditions, often ponying up their own money for missing supplies.

If the state were to grant all of the demands of the public-worker unions now negotiating, Cayetano argues, "the state would be forced to raise taxes, scale back welfare payments to the poor, cut critical services to the disadvantaged, children, and the elderly, lay off state workers, or all of the above."

True enough. But it is unfair to blame this fiscal bind on teachers. Their need is not relative to other budget considerations, but absolute.

What can Cayetano do to come closer to meeting the needs of teachers without resorting to desperate cuts?

• He is right that the state can't grant all of the public-worker raises being demanded. The state must abandon the idea of parity for public unions. This is the year that voters want the teaching profession in Hawai'i to become more than just adequately compensated. That means other unions must to some extent wait their turn.

• Cayetano can and should continue to pursue more productivity on the part of teachers in exchange for better pay. For instance, the state can demand the management rule revisions that Superintendent of Schools Paul LeMahieu has been seeking.