1. Mercy College Adjunct Faculty Contract Negotiations
Oct. 17, 2019
Mercy Faculty Forward
SEIU Local 200United

2. Shared Goals
Commitment to providing a quality education for working-class students
Empowering non-traditional students, including adult learners, first-generation college students, and veterans
Excellence in teaching and instruction
Improved student enrollment and retention
Recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty

3. Principles for Negotiation
Collegial, good faith negotiating
Timely bargaining sessions
Mutually beneficial problem-solving
Focus on established best practices
Long-term planning that sets Mercy on a positive trajectory

4. Respect for the Union Union shop
Ongoing organizing and bargaining rights
Clearly defined and effective grievance and arbitration procedures
Established labor-management committee to resolve issues
A role in new employee orientation processes

5. $25,750
$12,000

6. Academically speaking, as adjuncts, we do as much as full timers (if not more) but are not perceived as doing so and therefore are not treated with due respect; and, as such, not adequately remunerated. I have felt this particular grievance on a very deep level; just making monthly bills, despite seeking other opportunities for generating income, while struggling to keep from being homeless and destitute, has created a portrait of ongoing stress and nagging uncertainty. The aggregate experience: my quality of life has been adversely affected and, for the most part, virtually nonexistent. Theresa Ubriaco, Adjunct, Psychology

7. Mercy College Adjunct Pay Rates for 3-Credit Courses vs
Mercy College Adjunct Pay Rates for 3-Credit Courses vs. Comparable Institutions
School
Data Year
Union Contract
Base
Pay
Highest Pay
Source
Mercy College
2019 No
3000
3300
Office of the Provost
Fordham
Yes
5000
5400
_Bargaining_Unit_Faculty_Members.pdf
CUNY
2017
3222
5319
NJ State Colleges
2018
4425
4573
LIU / CW Post
3529
Rutgers
5200
Westchester Community
3730
4428
Marymount Manhattan
2016
3532
Hofstra
3828
4971
Agreement.pdf
Suffolk Community
3670
4803
UConn
5100
Pace
2955
4166

8. I graduated from Mercy College in 1977 with a degree in Speech Language Pathology. I worked in schools for children with communication disorders for 25 years and then decided to share my wealth of knowledge and experiences from the field at my alma mater. I have been working for Mercy College for 16 years in the Communication Disorders program. Currently, I teach 3 grad level classes, 3 undergrad classes, serve on the graduate admissions committee, am the coordinator of the undergraduate program which includes interviewing all new members of the program and advising them twice a year and I supervise students in the Mercy College Speech and Hearing Center. I present at PACT meetings and open houses. With all of this, I am considered part time. If I were not married I would be unable to support myself and am lucky I have benefits through my husband’s job. I love working with students and guiding them to becoming people who help others communicate more effectively. However, I am ashamed of my salary and that I rely on a man to support me so I can do the work I love. I support a union to protect me and help me get what I and all educators deserve.
Eileen Hoffman, Lecturer, Communication Disorders

9. Mercy College Financial Facts as of end of 2018 (source: Mercy College audited financial statements)
Mercy College has net assets of over $320 million, including an endowment fund worth over $245 million.
These resources are growing steadily: net assets up 40% since 2014; endowment up 68% since 2014.
The college has solid operating margins: revenues exceeded costs by $16 million in 2017 and by $10 million in 2018.
Total operating expenses in 2018 were $136 million, including $6.5 million for adjuncts/lecturers. (A 75% increase of $4.875 million for adjuncts and lecturers would represent just a 3.6% increase in total spending.)
The College has been able to find funding in recent years for physical improvements, advertising campaigns, expansion efforts and other forms of discretionary spending.
The College of New Rochelle absorption should further improve Mercy’s annual cash flow by bringing in substantial new tuition revenues.

10. SEIU and Mercy Faculty Forward
SEIU (Service Employees International Union) - founded in 1921
2nd largest union in the U.S., with close to 2,000,000 members
forefront of organizing service sector employees: public employees, nurses and other health care workers, property service employees, hotel and restaurant workers.
There are more than 50,000 non-tenured faculty and graduate students on 60 campuses belonging to unions affiliated with SEIU nationwide.
SEIU unions of non-tenured faculty and graduate students include the University of Chicago, George Washington University, Duke University, Emory University, and Northeastern University
SEIU is an umbrella organization for approximately 150 union locals which affiliate with the broader union.
Mercy Faculty Forward is part of Local 200United.
Local 200United includes chapters based in colleges and universities, hospitals, school districts, municipalities, social service agencies, etc.
There are currently 10 chapters of Local 200United representing non-tenured faculty at schools including Mercy College, Fordham University, Ithaca College, College of St. Rose, and Nazareth College.

11. MLA Best Practices for Employing Adjunct Faculty (http://www. mla
Adjuncts should be treated as qualified and respected professionals:
Equitable salaries
Health benefits
Office space, mailboxes, computer access, clerical support
Thorough orientation to department and school
Incentives for professional development
Participation in determining policy
Performance reviews comparable to tenure track positions

12. Our Objectives: Equitable Compensation
Significant initial pay raise (MLA best practices: minimum salary of $7,400 per 3-credit course)
Annual cost of living increases going forward
Compensation for larger class sizes, and for ancillary work outside of classroom instruction such as committee work, advising, etc.

13. Our Objectives: Job and Income Security
Longer-term/renewable contracts
Increase in the course cap
Assurance that adjuncts will be offered classes they have already taught
Just cause protections
Protection from job loss due to illness and family leave
Timely, predictable job appointment
Fair compensation for cancelled classes

14. My name is Jeff Hudson and I have worked here as an adjunct professor for 15 years. During my tenure at Mercy College, we have not received a meaningful pay increase. I enter this profession because my love of teaching . Unfortunately, given the low pay, the limit on the number of hours one can work and lack of benefits, it is very difficult to live in or near NYC. It is my hope that union representation would provide faculty an avenue that would lead to us being fairly compensation for our work. Jeff Hudson, Adjunct, Social and Behavioral Sciences

15. Why Job and Income Security Matter
Poverty wages and insecure job tenures create obstacles to providing the high quality education our students deserve.
Cancelled classes constitute a financial hardship for already low-paid adjuncts
Longer-term contracts would reduce needless stress and encourage loyalty and investment in Mercy College
Improved pay and job security would reduce turnover, and give adjuncts more time to prepare for classes and interact with students
Better working conditions for contingent faculty would translate into increased student success.

16. Our Objectives: Path to Full-time Employment
Create full-time positions for adjuncts interested in full-time work
Advertise full-time positions internally
Give current adjuncts the right of first refusal within the boundaries of diversity guidelines
Credit years teaching at Mercy College when filling full-time positions

17. Our Objectives: Establish Basic Benefits
Create a healthcare benefit for adjuncts teaching 2 or more courses a year
Create/maintain parity in retirement benefits for full-time and adjunct instructors
Full tuition remission for employees and their family members
Define and offer additional fringe benefits such as access to all facilities, free parking, and other programs offered to full-time personnel

18. I know I’m not the only one who needs access to affordable healthcare and job security. Kristina Zupnyk, Adjunct, Seminars

19. Our Objectives: Support for Professional Development and Career-Building
Provide funding to cover expenses related to professional development, e.g. research, conferences, publishing
Access to resources to maintain currency in the field
Appropriate teaching facilities, office space, administrative support, technology access and support
Inclusion of adjuncts in website and directory listings

20. I have worked in many colleges
I have worked in many colleges. All have treated their instructors as valuable resources. Instructors at other colleges are given office space, are paid for office hours, are ensured summer classes, are given benefits, are asked for input, and most of all are paid a sustainable wage. Mercy offers nothing like this. Some days, I just consider my job at Mercy as volunteer work. Susan Oleferuk, Adjunct, English

21. Our Objectives: A Voice for Adjunct Faculty
Defined guarantees of academic freedom
Participation in governance, committees, faculty meetings, department meetings
Established opportunities to provide input on curriculum and course design
Ongoing dialog between the administration and the adjunct faculty union

22. Our Objectives: An Expanded Evaluation System
Creating a record of performance is key to securing future employment
Rising reliance on adjuncts has not been coupled with development of formal evaluation processes
Student evaluations have been shown to be biased and incomplete
Improved record of performance protects adjuncts from risk of arbitrary dismissal

23. Mercy College’s ‘Mission’ and Adjunct Faculty
Mercy College proclaims its commitment to providing liberal arts and professional programs for low and moderate income students, minority groups, veterans, and first-generation college students.
And yet it relies on underpaid adjuncts to provide the bulk of its teaching.
Better pay and working conditions for contingent faculty would not only translate into increased student success; they would express respect for the dedicated professionals who actually carry out Mercy’s stated mission.