Union Takes Exception to my Column; Comes up Short
You can read the letter here.
Here are the highlights.
Mr. Bambenek also claims that academic professionals get 10 weeks paid leave per year. Even totaling our very generous vacation, holiday and sick leave does not reach 50 days.
Ok, you got me, it’s 48 days. I rounded up, shoot me.
For example, we heard from academic professionals who were expected to work 60+ hours/week for months on end and faced reprisals when they objected.
First, that makes them just like every other employee in the private sector. I did months of 90 hour weeks. Heck, talk to most law school grads who take their first job in a firm. One, they should ask what is required before they take the job. Two, they may or may not face reprisals, but for most objections, they are covered by whistleblowers protection… a benefit not afforded private sector employees. They can also… *gasp* find a new job.
Academic professionals are at the mercy of their immediate supervisor, who may not carry out University policy fairly. Even those of us with good supervisors are at risk because policies can be changed without notice and certainly without the input of academic professionals.
They can (1) talk to their supervisor, (2) talk to their department head, (3) quit. This is a free country and by pretending that the only recourse to an incompetent boss is to suck it up or unionize only ENSURES incompetent bosses stick around. The free market works when people choose, telling people they can’t choose sabotages the market. Also, because we work for a state agency, those policies CANNOT be changed without notice. Heck, most of them need to be approved through the UC Senate, the legislative body of the University. Some even need to take place in Board of Trustee meetings.
Forming a democratic union is the best way to ensure good working conditions so that academic professionals can continue to contribute to this campus.
This “democratic” union was formed to benefit a certain subset of academic professionals… those in the “visiting” category. Of 300 or so, only 60 voted in favor of unionizing. 20% is hardly democracy.
UPDATE:
The column in question is available here.
You’ve just described why learning and higher education has lost its real punch. The tenured faculty are comfortable and the system is now in full works to sustain and protect itself. I looked through your entire post for a spark of life for learning and creativity — the reason we created academe — and saw none. The system you describe is there in every campus and stand in the way of all that could happen to promote innovation which this country needs like never before. Instead we fight wars abroad and let dying systems fight to their death. I’d love to hear your take on “where to from here” to correct what we spoiled with time and tenure.
Comment by Ellen Weber | September 24, 2006