For years, a simmering tension has bubbled beneath the surface at Skidmore College, as the non-tenured faculty union—comprising 190 dedicated educators—has clashed with the administration over a set of pressing demands. Chief among these is a clarion call for enhanced compensation alongside a reevaluation of the influx of non-tenured faculty tethered to precarious terminal contracts.
At a recent rally, impassioned speakers shed light on a stark reality: many of these non-tenured educators struggle to scrape together a living in the vibrant yet costly Saratoga Springs, with annual take-home pay lingering around a meager $50,000 after taxes.
Casey Gray, a lecturer in the music department, spoke out boldly during the rally, detailing the backbreaking measures he’s had to undertake to make ends meet. Juggling multiple jobs, he finds himself hustling to churches as an organist, merely to attain a livable wage. “I’m weary,” he lamented, “of shuttling between various locales, carting my supplies with me—my makeshift office—and perpetually monitoring a stringent calendar to evade scheduling mishaps. The unrealistic expectations of a full-time role reside on my shoulders, yet my position is only a whisper—barely one credit hour shy of full-time eligibility. This status quo, steeped in contradiction, leaves me striving desperately for a secure future, with the specter of retirement looming on my modest earnings devoid of health benefits or paid familial leave to support my infant daughter’s open heart surgery.”
Diana Barnes, a senior teaching professor of Spanish, illuminated the emotional toll of her untenured status after nearly three decades with the college. “The uncertainty gnaws at me,” she admitted, recalling the nerve-wracking moments when her contract’s renewal became a potential disaster. “A dear colleague confided in me that each time the terminal contract deadline looms, they shed tears, consumed by anxiety.” The precariousness of her situation struck a nerve when a department oversight led to someone attempting to reclaim her computer due to an oversight in contract renewal.
Support surged at the rally from various figures, including David A. Banks, a geography and planning lecturer, Sarah Kizuk, a tenured philosophy instructor, and Greg Reynoso from the New York State Nurses Association, uniting voices in a stark call for change.
The non-tenured union raised the alarm over the college’s choice of legal counsel, noting that the attorney selected to negotiate matters for them is concurrently entangled in negotiations concerning the Albany Medical Center with the nurses’ union.
In response, the college asserted via an emailed statement that it is engaging in negotiations with the union in “good faith.” Yet, the union counters that while there have been tentative agreements reached, core demands remain largely unmet.
The college contends that the financial implications of the faculty’s salary demands could reach an additional burden of $3 million annually, with a proposed three-year contract potentially incurring a staggering $10 million beyond current budget provisions. “As a not-for-profit institution, we are acutely aware of fiscal limitations that impact these negotiations,” a college spokesperson remarked, asserting a commitment to achieving an equitable resolution for all employees, particularly non-tenured faculty.
Echoing a growing agitation within the ranks of these educators, union member and philosophy professor Peter Murray declared, “Our documented proposals reveal time and again that the administration’s response is a steadfast clinging to the status quo—it is morally untenable and must not persist.”
In an increasing wave of dissatisfaction, the union has filed a labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that the college unilaterally imposed a 3% salary adjustment on non-tenured faculty without prior negotiation.
Despite this, the administration seems intent on preserving this increase, citing potential fiscal instability should they exceed this threshold, notwithstanding a prolonged history of financial viability tethered to the back of undercompensated non-tenured faculty members. In the aftermath of Friday’s rally, the union reiterated the message that a shift from this untenable status quo is not just necessary but vital.
