CADEN HAYNOR / ASST. NEWS EDITOR

Last summer, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) held an election for the creation of a non-tenure track (NTT) faculty union at the University of San Diego. The election certified that USD  NTT  faculty were represented by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 721 for the purposes of collective bargaining. Of the 182 people who voted, over 90% voted for the union. This was decided with no objections from USD’s attorneys.

The  union  is  currently meeting biweekly with administration and negotiating proposals to change the terms of their contracts. 

Dr. Holly Hamilton-Bleakley, an NTT adjunct assistant professor of philosophy and the director of medieval and renaissance studies, explained the function of the union in relation to its conversations with administrators.

“The department chairs and administrations have to be a little more  at  arms  length  from adjuncts because of the union,” Hamilton-Bleakley added. “The union is kind of the middleman now, so there is less direct involvement.”

Professor Soroya Rowley is a part-time theater professor who has been at USD for 20 years. Rowley has been a key part of the union  and explained the progress of the  negotiation  process   thus  far.

“It’s going at a good pace,” Rowley stated. “We worked really hard last semester to propose the full contract, and USD has been good about responding in a timely fashion to our proposals. We’ve done a tentative agreement on three articles so far. Those articles are the savings clause, where we can negotiate and renegotiate certain aspects of the laws change; labor management committee, which is a formal way for people representing the employer and people representing the union to have regular meetings; and then notice of vacant positions, which is a policy to ensure that those folks who are eligible for certain teaching opportunities know that [USD is] looking for someone.”

USD has been in collaboration with the union since last year. The University’s media relations team commented on the ongoing affairs.

“The University is continuing to meet with the NTT union representatives in the hope of reaching a mutually acceptable collective bargaining agreement,” USD’s media relations team said. “The meetings began last Fall, and we  are  in  the  process  of exchanging proposals and negotiating in good faith toward a resolution.”

Some of the most prevalent subjects  of  the  union’s negotiations are related to elements of job security including healthcare, contract shifts, retirement and wages. Health insurance more specifically, is a benefit that can change based on the contract allocated by the school. For full-time benefits-based employees, healthcare benefits include medical, dental and vision. 

Rowley expressed the importance of healthcare benefits in the negotiation process.

“Our main benefit is healthcare,” Rowley said. “Most of us get it through covered California or a spouse, and so it would be much better for us to [get it through USD].”

Another topic of negotiation has been increasing the length of contract for NTT faculty. The school’s process of hiring adjunct, or supplementary, faculty long-term has led to one-semester and one-year contracts, which do not contain certain benefits, causing NTT faculty to want longer contracts.

Hamilton-Bleakley explained the history of hiring adjunct professors.

“It’s an outdated system that is doing different things than it was meant to accomplish at the beginning,” Hamilton-Bleakley claimed. “At the beginning it was, say 70 years ago, set up so that if a professor took a sabbatical, then you could bring in someone who’s retired from the department, and they come in and teach the class and they’ll pay them some money. But, now in a lot of departments, the bulk of your department is adjuncts, and they’re doing the bulk of your teaching. And you’re paying them a significantly lower amount of money. And they’re not contingent because they stay here, you know, this is my eleventh year. So, it’s not like you’re coming in for a semester and then you’re never heard of again.”

Hamilton-Bleakley further spoke about her experience with short term contracts.

“They have this policy that if you’re a benefits-based employee, any children you have that get into USD can qualify for tuition remission,” Hamilton-Bleakley explained. “My daughter is applying this cycle to get into USD. I just found out a couple weeks ago that actually [tuition remission] only happens if you have a three year contract. I am full time, and I am benefits based, but I only have a one year contract. So my  daughter does not qualify for tuition remission, even though this is my eleventh year.”

Another  prevalent negotiation topic is retirement compensation, which USD allocates through the use of a retirement savings plan. This is offered by schools and nonprofits to their employees.

Rowley explained the access that NTT faculty have to USD’s retirement benefits.

“USD has a really great retirement benefit for employees, so we think that the NTT faculty should have access to that,” Rowley said. “Right now, the part-timers have no access.”

Another stressed subject of negotiation has been higher wages, specifically asking the University to allocate a living wage to NTT faculty.

Dr. Diane Keeling, who is finishing her twelfth year at USD as a tenure-track (TT) professor of communication, expressed her opinion on the wages currently allocated to many NTT faculty.

“I feel like it is an injustice that NTT faculty who have been here longer than me get paid as much as a new TT professor,” Keeling explained. “They’re not compensated  for their experience in  the  same  way  as  a  TT professor.”

Professor Dylan Wells, a part-time English professor with two years at USD, explained the effect that low wages have on many NTT faculty.

“We are all employees who have multiple masters degrees, Ph.D.s and years of experience, and we are not making a living wage,” Wells explained. “So what we have to do is work in multiple schools. I am teaching at three institutions right now total … It will have a tangible difference in the classroom if I can teach 90 students instead of 125 students. I can give each student more of the time and attention in the class and in office hours.”

Protests led by NTT faculty and student supporters erupted in spring of 2024. Photo courtesy of @usd_nttfaculty/Instagram

Some students have noticed how teaching at multiple institutions can  stretch a professor thin. USD first-year Matt  Chufong-Sprague explained his experience with accessing a NTT professor in the art history department last semester.

“[My professor] wasn’t available for any of her office hours during finals week, and so it was a struggle to ask her any questions,” Chufong-Sprague said. “She   was never even available through Zoom because she had other classes to teach then.”

Some students have noticed, however, that many other types of professors are stretched thin with workplace obligations as part of their profession. USD first-year Nico Posehn described his  experience with a TT professor in the mathematics department.

“I noticed in my first semester that a TT professor of mine was constantly stretched thin not only in her class, but with other responsibilities on an impromptu department level which made her less available for office hours,” Posehn outlined. “Between my friends, there seems to be a common trend that all types of professors are occupied with a lot of obligations.”

As the negotiation process continues, NTT faculty wait for a compromise with USD administration to see improvements in elements of their job security and wages.

A key initiative of the NTT faculty was the ability to vote in USD matters such as benefits, wages and hours. Photo courtesy of @usd_nttfaculty/Instagram