The Lecturers’ Employee Organization (LEO) has been in contract negotiations with the University since November. The focus of LEO’s contract campaign is Equal Pay for Equal Work. In most higher ed institutions across the US, non-tenure-track faculty–called lecturers at UM, but called “adjuncts” or “contingent faculty” elsewhere–make a fraction of tenure-track professors’ salaries. Lecturers at the University’s three campuses in Ann Arbor, Flint, and Dearborn are paid anywhere from one-half to two-thirds less per class than tenure-track faculty. LEO asks that the University live up to its mission of education by giving all its teaching faculty equitable and competitive compensation.
The University has met LEO’s salary proposal with great resistance. Until Friday, February 15th, they offered Ann Arbor lecturers a 0% salary increase for the next three years, while offering modest salary increases for lecturers in Flint and Dearborn. On the 15th, they offered an equally insulting proposal of 0%, 0%, 1%, .5%, and .5% raises over the course of 5 years–a total of 2% over that time. “We’ve signed some tentative agreements so far, but the stumbling block is monetary proposals,” said LEO president Bonnie Halloran.
The University’s resistance goes farther than just salary, however. It has also proposed a clause in the contract that would allow the University to modify or discontinue lecturers’ health and retirement benefits at any time, invalidating the purpose of contractual negotiations over benefits.
When asked why the University is taking such a hard line with these proposals, Halloran said that, although the University has not given explicit reasons, the implication is that the proposals are “retaliation for the Equal Pay for Equal Work argument. They don’t like it, and they’re letting us know.”
In response, LEO is using creative strategies, like a widely-publicized flash mob in Haven Hall, and a grade-in at the entrance to the Flemming Building to raise awareness about their campaign and to put pressure on the University administration. GEO members have shown amazing solidarity at these events and should continue to keep a close
eye on LEO’s negotiations because similar proposals may be coming our way in the near or distant future. We know that money isn’t the issue–both administrator salaries and tuition keep rising–but the general trend in academia is to increasingly rely on the labor of low-salaried employees: lecturers and graduate student instructors. LEO’s struggle at
the table is not just a preview of what GEO may face next year; it is a struggle for the future of academic labor.
What can you do to show solidarity: LEO is holding a Contract Now! Rally on Thursday, February 21st at 2:30pm. We’ll start on the steps of the Michigan Union and march to the Flemming Administration Building. Come grab a LEO shirt and show your support for fair compensation of educators on campus.
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