Employee turnover is a significant cost in higher education institutions and involves potential disruptions in teaching and research programs, student advising, morale, and hiring costs to replace faculty and staff (Monks, 2012; Nagowski, 2006). In 2008, institutional costs of high turnover were estimated at $68 million (Figueroa, 2015). Turnover…

The use of casual contract employment has become a prominent feature in higher education institutions worldwide, including the growth of adjunct roles in the United States and fixed-term teaching staff positions in the UK. In Australia, this trend has been a subject of significant controversy and national attention in recent years, as casual…

Since the 1970s, higher education has become increasingly reliant upon adjunct faculty to fill gaps in class instruction, but institutions tend to offer adjuncts subpar professional support as compared to their full-time counterparts. To ensure students' academic success, it is vital that adjuncts are provided resources, points of engagement that…

In the UK, a default retirement age no longer exists and more people choose to 'stay on' in their academic posts. 'Staying on' poses opportunities and threats in the academic labour market. Older academics can make a positive contribution to their institution through their expertise and experience. By continuing to work, paying tax and keeping…

Landing a tenure-track position is no easy task. Achieving tenure is even more difficult. Under what policies and practices do faculty find greater clarity about tenure and experience higher levels of job satisfaction? And what makes an institution a great place to work? In 2005-2006, the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education…

The American community college has posed, for a period of time, some distinctively unique concerns pertaining to legal issues. However, the most pressing legal issues facing community colleges now are those regarding personnel. The diversity of programs community colleges offer require that personnel (specifically faculty) come to the institution…

The loss of full-time tenure faculty positions along with the overuse and financial exploitation of contingent faculty (part-time, full-time nontenure track and graduate employees) are roiling higher education around the country. This is called the academic staffing crisis. Many are undoubtedly working through the bargaining process to improve the…

For decades it has been happening everywhere in academe, but nowhere in particular. The sweeping shift toward non-tenure-track academic labor has been one of the most worried-over trends in American higher education. But it has been charted mostly with broad-brush data, which give little indication of the trend's progress at the institutional…

A study of lawsuits filed by college faculty against their institutions looked at the effects of litigation on the people and institutions involved. The discussion examines standards of judicial review and construction of a fair personnel decision-making process. Careful planning, conscientious application of policies, and meaningful internal…

A bibliography of 1,070 publications and court cases affecting labor relations and college faculty, as well as the health professions, is presented with a focus on calendar year 1984. The faculty section covers: academic freedom, accountability, administration, affirmative action, arbitration and mediation, collective bargaining, community…

Discusses the potential effects of a stable or declining academe and a more competitive educational market on tenure and faculty quality. Concludes that universities will pursue a flexibility-enhancing strategy which will include the use of junior and senior educators in nontenured but prestigious and highly paid positions. (GEA)

Four contributors (1) discuss a rationale that would enable English departments to maintain a balance between publishing and perishing, (2) argue for the small colleges relinquishing their publish-or-perish policies, (3) examine the benefits of writing for alternative audiences, and (4) explore limitations on scholarly publishing. (AEA)

Discusses how some colleges are letting tenured and tenure-track professors cut their hours and pay to spend more time with their families. (EV)

The difficulties experienced by part-time faculty members are discussed, and some benefits of part-time teaching are identified. Among the problems faced by part-time staff are per-course salaries, lack of college-paid benefits, job insecurity, and invisibility on campus. If the part-time teaching position is a primary source of income and career…

Problems affecting the profession of college teaching are considered, along with the reasons for the persistence of faculty in academia. In some fields, practically no mobility remains today. Many faculty end up teaching at a college that they would not have chosen to attend. While teaching and research may focus on important national and world…