At my Community College, we adjuncts are AFT and the full time unit is AAUP. Since the adjunct local organized 8 years ago we have had constant issues with AAUP. After much digging I found out last semester that adjuncts are given some governance rights in the Faculty Senate Bylaws, but AAUP had denied us these rights for years. With much pressure and much persistance we finally have pushed them to give four adjuncts full voting rights in the Senate.
Also, I now serve as a member of the Faculty Executive Committee, without voting rights and in an advisory position, but it is a start. In my College, the AAUP Chapter does all it can to keep the adjuncts our of college governance so they can try to control everything. AAUP National may claim to support adjunct presence in governance, but until they impose this on their Chapters, it means nothing. Until Chapters allow the majority of the faculty (the New Faculty Majority!) to have some say in the governance of the College, they are only giving lip service.
Bill Lipkin
Treasurer, New Faculty Majority Board
In our joint union, adjuncts are the majority in terms of numbers. But many will not become voting members as a result of fear or apathy.If they did, we would control the union. As it is, there is only one specific position for an adjunct on the executive council although there is nothing but that same fear and apathy to stop adjuncts from running for other positions. There is no representation on the academic senate and adjuncts are either prohibited or discouraged from serving on most committees.
ReplyDeleteAs for AAUP, they have had a lovely statement for years on their web site about equity for adjuncts (as has AFT and NEA) but except for a few joint organizaing campaigns with AFT, they have done little or nothing to implement it and likely never will.