Four panelists and a fluid group of Part-time Faculty, both new and returning, met for about an hour and a half to discuss questions, give advice and get ideas. The panelists were April Freely, Faculty Senator; Dr. Bean, a former department coordinator of many Part-time Faculty; Jim Wallace, Part-time Faculty with many years of experience, and Shannon Osorio, Faculty Senator. Some of the items we discussed include:
1. Make sure you know what your rank and rate of pay are. If you didn’t get this in writing when you started, check with your department administration and check your pay stub. Make sure that the pay stub matches what you have been told. It might be worth it to print out your pay stub at least once a semester. Some PT Faculty have noticed that Sick Leave Hours were reduced without any sick leave taken.
2. Sick leave accumulates as you work. Your accumulated sick leave hours should not go down unless you report a sick day, in which case you fill out and sign a form. Note that the hours charged for a sick day are not the same as your classroom hours. Be sure to report sick days (or days that you do not teach your class). You are reimbursed for the sick leave hours that you have accumulated during your employment with the University of Akron when you terminate employment.
3. Your salary is based on your rank. See the University Rules at http://www.uakron.edu/ogc/UniversityRules/pdf/20-06.1.pdf. These rules have been unchanged for 14 years. Because the base pay for each rank [$600/cr for Assistant Lecturer, $700/cr for Associate Lecturer, and $800/cr for Senior Lecturer] has been unchanged since 1999, the real dollar amount Part-time Faculty earn has been significantly eroded. There is no merit pay increase, although individual department policies may allow for successful negotiation of an increase. You can always try to negotiate a better rate of pay.
4. Be sure to keep track of the number of credit hours you teach, since these are what lead to a change in rank. Credit hours taught at other institutions also count in determining your rank.
5. Also keep any student evaluations or summaries of evaluations that you receive. These are usually the evidence used to demonstrate your satisfactory teaching ability. If your department does not periodically visit and evaluate your class, you can and should request that someone evaluate your teaching – usually directed to the department chair. If Full-time Faculty are too busy to visit your class, ask a peer and have them fill out an evaluation form. Keep these records in your work record file. Some departments also keep a copy of these records.
6. Health care coverage is expensive and requires that you thread the needle of eligibility. Many Part time Faculty find that coverage costs more than they earn in a month. Once your window of eligibility closes, you can not choose health care coverage again. However the New Faculty Majority is now offering Part-time Faculty the opportunity to purchase Health Care Coverage at a much more reasonable rate. This is explained on the OPTFA web-site at http://www.newfacultymajority.info/equity/joomla-stuff-mainmenu-26/health-insurance-for-adjuncts
We can continue the discussion here. What questions would you ask of these panelists?
