SUPPORT RESEARCH ON PART-TIME WORKERS’ SALARIES IN HIGHER EDUCATION

WHEREAS, part-time faculty currently constitute an unduly high percentage of the nation’s higher education teaching and professional force, serving many thousands of students enrolled in our colleges and universities; and

WHEREAS, the numbers of part-time faculty and staff constantly increase; and

WHEREAS, part-time faculty often teach the same courses as full-time faculty; and

WHEREAS, the majority of part-time faculty earn between one-fourth and one-half of the wages of a full-time faculty member on a per-class basis, often earning less than $2,000 to teach an entire course; and

WHEREAS, part-time faculty are either poorly compensated or paid not at all for advising students or working with their colleagues on academic matters; and

WHEREAS, the American Federation of Teachers has made the issue of equal pay and benefits for part-time faculty and staff a priority issue; and

WHEREAS, the AFT supports the principle of equal pay for equal work for all workers; and

WHEREAS, access to a secure family wage and a full-time job is an essential tenet of the AFL-CIO agenda for working families:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers work cooperatively with its higher education locals to help secure salary equity for part-time workers in their workplaces; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT investigate new and innovative ways to enhance the ability of part-time faculty and staff to achieve a fair and equitable wage; and 

RESOLVED, that the AFT higher education department, in conjunction with the AFT research department, undertake a study both of salaries of part-time workers in higher education and of the contract language from various locals that addresses the issue of salary for part-time workers in higher education, along with any other relevant data that could aid in negotiating higher salaries for part-time workers, and that the results of this research be disseminated to the higher education locals in the AFT.