Wednesday, February 11, 2009

The Solution: Furloughs?

A rumor has just come my way that administrators are thinking about furloughs of faculty members to cut costs.

The suggestion is that UWO would save hundreds of thousands of dollars by not paying faculty members who do not teach during interims.

Pretty scary thought!  As if our pay weren't low enough!

The cutting starts soon, as the Gov. gets ready to reveal his plan to fix the $600 million shortfall for this year.  Then, we'll have to deal with the cuts of the next biennium.  

With the 'moderates' removing support for states from the stimulus bill in Washington, we should be prepared. . . .

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rumors. Reporting unsourced, unfounded rumors. My, isn't that nice. A regular Chicken Little. Get everyone all stirred up before anything is known.

No wonder you hide behind anonymity.

Anonymous said...

Professors make pretty good money -- much more than most people suffering from this economic crisis right now.

And you're complaining because you might be out a paycheck during a measly 3 week interim?

It's called shared sacrifice. Everyone is hurting right now.

"As if our pay weren't low enough!"

Sometimes I wonder if it's all about greed with you folks. Count your blessings.

Anonymous said...

Nice. That reasoning presumes those who don't teach do nothing during interim but walk around the house all day in their underwear (try not to picture that). There are many of us who use that time for scholarship/research, which, when last I checked, is part of the job description, and an important contribution to the university mission.

Regarding pay, this has been hashed over countless times. But the typical UWO faculty member is on par with teachers in the Oshkosh School District (with Master's degrees, not PhDs). Yet I seem to hear far fewer people calling them greedy. Why do you suppose that is?

Anonymous said...

Actually, Mike, if you read some of the local blogs, K-12 teachers here in town are vilified as greedy even more than we are. Their union is going to destroy America, after all.

The problem is there every chucklehead around here somehow thinks we are all getting six figure salaries (obviously have us confused with chancellors), when in fact there are guys at Oshkosh Truck earning more than a lot of us.

Anonymous said...

I wonder if the corrections system will implement forloughs, or at a minimum, work for no pay a 1.5 days a month. If shared sacrifice is the way it is to be in the future, then by all means, prisons, courts, and even police and fire should be called upon as well.

Working To Make A Living said...

I agree all educators should be paid twice as much and be guaranteed the ability to say whatever they want, and not have their jobs at risk. Educators are much more important for the long term health or our society than people who sell widgets, or the bankers who finance them. Maybe if the above policies are in place, students will leave school with the ability to think for themselves. Universities should be an example of what could be rather than a mill to turn out obedient workers.

Anonymous said...

Frankly, I wouldn't be able to afford a pay cut. My kid just missed getting free milk in school, and I have a PhD and am tenured!

People expect a Saks Fifth Avenue education for TJ Maxx prices. I need January to prep my classes, conduct searches for my department, and the things others have mentioned.

Sacrifice? I buy media materials for my students. I, and many faculty, work for a salary much less than private industry will pay. I can accept that, but it upsets me when people think we don't make sacrifices for the greater good.

I'm okay with no raises. But if the state recruits us to move here--often from out of state-- and to deliver the educational services, I expect my contract to be honored.