Our Voice, a Blog for Montgomery College Part-Time Faculty
Question: What do you think of pay parity for part-time teachers? Post your comments & questions below!
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Pay Parity for Part-Time Teachers
By Victoria Baldassano
Like other educational institutions in Montgomery County, Montgomery College faces serious budget constraints and is implementing furlough days for some full-time faculty and staff. So why introduce the issue of pay parity for part-time faculty? Because, as Prof. Alan Stover notes below, "...we are more deeply affected by the economy than anyone." For decades, long before the current economic downturn, universities and community colleges around the country have relied on part-time professors with low salaries and no benefits to help balance their budgets. From the beginning MC has been part of this national trend, which has increased over time.
The statistics are telling. Part-time faculty now represents 48 percent of all teaching faculty at degree-granting institutions, up from 34 percent in 1987 and 22 percent in 1970. In the last 10 years, the numbers of part-time faculty members have increased at almost three times the rate of full-time members. And at two-year public institutions, over 68 percent of all faculty members (instruction and research) are part-time. Economists predict that gradually the U.S. national and local financial outlook will improve. So now is the time to plan for our future, a time when part-time educators will finally be given equal pay for equal work.
At present, contingent faculty occupy the lowest rung in a higher education "caste system that violates our societal sense of fairness, justice, and decency," according to Pablo Eisenberg, senior fellow at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. Budget tightening is nothing new for part-time faculty, he noted in a recent blog for the Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pablo-eisenberg/the-untouchables-of-ameri_b_629815.html. "Large numbers of adjuncts... barely make $20,000 annually, not enough to provide for a family or children."
But part-time teachers around the country have begun to demand better wages and working conditions, bringing the issue of pay parity to the fore. Soon Montgomery College will join that ongoing debate. As part of the collective bargaining agreement between the college and SEIU Local 500, a labor-management committee will soon explore pay-parity for part-timers.
What does pay parity mean and how does it compare with the notion of pay equity? As defined by Webster’s New World Dictionary, pay parity means “the state or condition of being the same in power, value, rank, [and] equality.” In other words, equal pay for equal work. Pay equity, on the other hand, means pay that is fair and equitable. Unfortunately, college administrators could decide that fair and equitable compensation for part-timers means earning a fraction of what full-timers earn.
In fact, part-time professors at MC earn two to three times less than our full-time colleagues. According to the April 16 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education, the average pay for full-time faculty at MC ranges from $55,800 for an instructor to $87,600 for a professor. (The top salary level for full time faculty is currently $95,850). This translates into per ESH rates of $1,860 for an instructor to $2,920 for a professor. Of course this does not include benefits such as health insurance, retirement, vacation, sick leave, and paid tuition. By comparison, we earn $870.83 per ESH for a lecturer, $911.81 for Adjunct l (after teaching a minimum of six (6) semesters and 18 professional development credits), and $947.66 for Adjunct ll (after teaching a minimum of twelve (12) semesters and 36 professional development credits). We have practically no benefits.
What justifies such a disparity? Do we provide two to three times less quality than the full-time faculty? Do we work under a different set of standards or expectations? Absolutely not. The administration bases its calculations on the market value of other part-time professors in Maryland. Using that approach alone, we earn more than other part-time teachers in the state. However, most of us live and work in the most expensive county in the state. Doesn’t it make more sense to compare our salaries with those of the full-time faculty members who work at the same institution?
But what about other aspects of a full-time teacher’s job, such as committee assignments, selection of textbooks, and curriculum development? Well, in the summer, full-timers do not have these added responsibilities. They get paid 75 percent of what they earn during the regular academic year, which seems to be the value the college places on teaching only. The rates for the summer range from $1,395 per ESH for an instructor to $2,190 per ESH for a professor. So parity for part-time professors might correspond to the rates paid to full-timers during the summer. Pay parity may be a long term objective, but this is a place to start the discussion. What do you think?
Victoria Baldassano
7 Comments
Reader Comments (7)
The question of pay parity for part-time faculty, and what that might mean, is a national hot buttons issue, right now. Check out this article from February's Chronicle of Higher Education.
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/Do-Part-Timers-Deserve-Pay/882/
I agree that pay parity is a must. We also need to look at ranking among part-time faculty. Currently, there is no point system (as there is for full time faculty) to recognize educational background and work experience. It appears that one's rank is determined by how many CTL courses have been completed. I am not denegrating CTL courses, they are fine, but other elements should go into determining rank (and pay for that matter).
Are we chasing windmills here? While the economy (especially for a public-supported institution) is in shambles, how can part-timers even think of pushing for "pay parity"-- which translates to a 200% pay increase? I'd expect many people to shake their heads and say "get real!"
The answer here is that as part-time faculty, we are fully aware of the economic situation. In fact, as the lowest-paid group of employees on campus, and with virtually no benefits, we are more deeply affected by the economy than anyone. Under the best of conditions, a part-timer may be able to make $20,000 a year--less than a full-time faculty member can earn at MC over the summer.
It's a simple matter of principle: equal pay for equal work. If the part-time faculty is truly valued and respected by the institution (other than for the fact that our low pay is what makes it possible to provide good pay and benefits to FT faculty), our pay should reflect it.
I thank our union for this blog opportunity. We need to do as much as possible to bring us together when the nature of our work and schedules argues against it on the shop floor. My comments focus on positive issues - first compliments on the blog option well done.
I believe job #1 is gaining more members for the uuion so we are not just talking to ourselves - the same folks over and over again. Few outside of a core group seem to understand the enormous accomplishment - first on gaining the opportunity to organize and then recognition and then a contract. We must remember what other groups have had to experience to win these rights and ultimately to win legal access to the decision table - we are there and for that we must commend SEIU Local 500 and our superior senior committee and bargaining team for this in itself was an enormous accomplishment.
The discussion of pay equity is one of importance as are other operational matters. I support the discussion. I do simply believe that we must seek every possible option to bring our colleagues into the union so we truly represent part time facuty in real human numbers not just in the formal legal sense of being the official and exclusive bargaining unit. We have gained access to the table and now we need to build a support base - a real support base for that effort.
I take enromous pride in having dues deducted from my check for our union. Wow - we walk in the shoes of some of the finest folks in the history of this country. We should not take any of it for granted - build union membership as Job #1 good colleagues. Arthur Wallenstein, Rockville Campus - Criminal Justice Program
In the words of a great philosophical part-time faculty member - "get real!" After recognizing that the economy sucks and we should know it, you then push for "equal pay for equal work." You first have to equalize the work - and that is no small matter, with committee assignments, increased office hours and advising responsibilities. And I disagree with your 200% increase figure - I think the figure is probably less than 100% - still a formidable figure. We must concurrently push for respect and recognition of our intrinsic value. With help, pay will track this increased respect and recognition.
I like the pay parity proposal you've put forth, Victoria. I wasn't aware full-timers in the summer were paid at a much higher rate than part-timers, when our workloads are more comparable than during the fall and spring semesters.
Since part-timers are the backbone of the community college's faculty, it is in the best interest of the college to keep us happy and competitive. Increased benefits and pay parity will attract more qualified workers and result in a higher quality of education delivered to our students.
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