Oct. 28 to Nov. 3 has been designated Campus Equity Week, a movement designed to highlight the working conditions and salaries of part-time faculty at Concordia University.
Maria Peluso, president of Concordia University Part-time Faculty Association (CUPFA) and a part time Political Science professor at Concordia, said it is the first time that Campus Equity Week has been organized as a coalition with faculty from all of the other major faculty unions, associations and disciplinary organizations from the U.S. and Canada.
“It has really been a concerted effort. We ran a campaign last year with TBA (To Be Announced) buttons, to symbolize the fact that when a student registers for a course, and the name of the professor is written as TBA, it’s because the part-time professor who will be teaching that course isn’t aware of where he/she will be placed,” said Peluso.
According to Peluso, part-time faculty account for 40 per cent of faculty
appointments. Despite the fact that part-time professors perform essentially the same tasks as do full-time professors, they enjoy none of the same benefits.
Part-time professors do not have access to e-mail, telephones or photocopiers.
They do not have offices into which they can invite students to discuss academic situations. A part-time faculty member at Concordia University receives only 30 per cent of full time pay, and has no job security and receives no health or pension benefits. Peluso said that many of these part-time faculty members end up on welfare or unemployment.
Dennis Murphy, the executive director of communications at Concordia claimed that there are two fundamental reasons why the current situation with part-time faculty at Concordia exists. “Originally at Concordia part time professors had some form of other employment. For example, you may have had a professor that was a retired employee of the Gazette, or someone who ran a program at CFCF-12.
But what started happening in the 60’s and 70’s, and especially in language programs, was that a lot more students started showing up to class, and more professors were needed. So part time professors would accept the position as a supplement to their income.
“Especially in the last 15 years, it became practice to offer courses on a
part-time basis to doctoral students. This allowed them to double the income they would be making as a teaching assistant, and it also provided them with the opportunity to get some experience in teaching.”
Murphy explained that it has now become practice to hire part-time professors, and it is now considered acceptable to consider a position as a part-time professor as primary employment. “Financially, it is not a viable way of earning one’s living. And this is evident in the way that CUPFA is trying to sensitize people to their campaign.”
Peluso added that a notion of equity between people performing the same job is required, and that students need to be aware of the quality of their education.
“Part-time professors at Concordia have no part in any of the university
committees, we have no voting member on the board of governors. We are basically performing slave labour. We want students to be aware of the quality of their education. We also want the university to integrate the part-time faculty.”
CUPFA is appealing to students to sign their postcard campaign “Equal Work=Equal Pay.” The cards can be found at CUPFA information booths located on both campuses. On Wednesday, there will be a booth set up in the lobby of the Library Building.
Signed cards can be sent to the CUPFA offices at 2150 Bishop, K-130, Montreal H3G 1M8.
Maria Peluso, president of Concordia University Part-time Faculty Association (CUPFA) and a part time Political Science professor at Concordia, said it is the first time that Campus Equity Week has been organized as a coalition with faculty from all of the other major faculty unions, associations and disciplinary organizations from the U.S. and Canada.
“It has really been a concerted effort. We ran a campaign last year with TBA (To Be Announced) buttons, to symbolize the fact that when a student registers for a course, and the name of the professor is written as TBA, it’s because the part-time professor who will be teaching that course isn’t aware of where he/she will be placed,” said Peluso.
According to Peluso, part-time faculty account for 40 per cent of faculty
appointments. Despite the fact that part-time professors perform essentially the same tasks as do full-time professors, they enjoy none of the same benefits.
Part-time professors do not have access to e-mail, telephones or photocopiers.
They do not have offices into which they can invite students to discuss academic situations. A part-time faculty member at Concordia University receives only 30 per cent of full time pay, and has no job security and receives no health or pension benefits. Peluso said that many of these part-time faculty members end up on welfare or unemployment.
Dennis Murphy, the executive director of communications at Concordia claimed that there are two fundamental reasons why the current situation with part-time faculty at Concordia exists. “Originally at Concordia part time professors had some form of other employment. For example, you may have had a professor that was a retired employee of the Gazette, or someone who ran a program at CFCF-12.
But what started happening in the 60’s and 70’s, and especially in language programs, was that a lot more students started showing up to class, and more professors were needed. So part time professors would accept the position as a supplement to their income.
“Especially in the last 15 years, it became practice to offer courses on a
part-time basis to doctoral students. This allowed them to double the income they would be making as a teaching assistant, and it also provided them with the opportunity to get some experience in teaching.”
Murphy explained that it has now become practice to hire part-time professors, and it is now considered acceptable to consider a position as a part-time professor as primary employment. “Financially, it is not a viable way of earning one’s living. And this is evident in the way that CUPFA is trying to sensitize people to their campaign.”
Peluso added that a notion of equity between people performing the same job is required, and that students need to be aware of the quality of their education.
“Part-time professors at Concordia have no part in any of the university
committees, we have no voting member on the board of governors. We are basically performing slave labour. We want students to be aware of the quality of their education. We also want the university to integrate the part-time faculty.”
CUPFA is appealing to students to sign their postcard campaign “Equal Work=Equal Pay.” The cards can be found at CUPFA information booths located on both campuses. On Wednesday, there will be a booth set up in the lobby of the Library Building.
Signed cards can be sent to the CUPFA offices at 2150 Bishop, K-130, Montreal H3G 1M8.
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