St. Michael’s College administration and the Service Employees International Union, Local 200United came to an agreement last week on an increase in wages by as much as 15 percent for adjunct faculty.
Adjunct faculty – part-time contract workers without benefits – voted to join the SEIU last December. They teach roughly 20 percent of all undergraduate courses offered at St. Michael’s College.
“We are happy because we got a contract and it is a start. We can move on from here and we will,” said Sharyn Layfield, who teachers writing and literature and was a member of the negotiating team. ”We want more help with retirement, we want benefits and we want more wages – we are going to keep pushing.”
Layfield says adjunct pay is miserable. Most recently, the college offered them only a 2 percent raise that would have resulted in $22 per credit hour.
“Adjunct pay is a fraction of the pay of full-time faculty with the same degrees, teaching the same classes. And the last offer of a mere 2 percent raise over already poverty level wages will do nothing to right that wrong,” according to Pat La Rose, an adjunct professor and member of the team that negotiated the terms.
They want parity, not equal pay, according to Layfield. “We want equal pay for the work we do that is the same work that they do,” she said.
The talks that began in the summer, resulted in a 10 percent increase in adjunct pay for those who teach credit bearing courses, and 15 percent for those who teach non-credit bearing courses. In the second year of the contract that begins in July 2016, adjuncts can renegotiate for an additional increase in pay.
The new contract also provides a $1,000 cancellation fee for any courses that the college cancels without notice. The adjuncts won the right to participate in departmental meetings and events as well as some professional development funds and “reasonable job security,” according to the SEIU.
The meetings were cordial and positive, according to Layfield. “We worked well together and I want that to continue as we begin to really work toward parity.”
Jeffrey Ayres, the dean of the college, said, “There is no question about the commitment of adjuncts to the mission of the college and to our students.”
