From manageable workloads to adjunct pay rates, medical leave to tuition waivers, raises to professional development, thousands of union members shared their concerns and priorities in the union’s first-ever electronic membership survey. In May, PSC members let union leadership know what issues are most important to them for the next contract and what the union could do better. PSC President Barbara Bowen said in an email to members, “We want every member to respond and every unique response to be heard.” Joan Rogers-Harrington of NYSUT, who helped administer the poll, said, “In the context of other NYSUT locals, 30 percent is considered as good a response rate you can hope for.” As this issue of Clarion was going to press, preliminary results from the survey were coming in. At the beginning of the Fall semester, there will be a more comprehensive analysis of survey results and the issues expressed by CUNY faculty and staff. Listed in the table are the number of responses and response rates from different categories of workers represented by the PSC.
| TITLE | RESPONSES | RESPONSE RATES |
|---|---|---|
| Graduate Assistant | 315 | 23% |
| Teaching Adjunct | 2,495 | 22% |
| Full-time Faculty Professors, Lectures, Instructors | 3,185 | 43% |
| Higher Education Officer | 2,112 | 45% |
| Full-time College Laboratory Technician | 263 | 49% |
| Adjunct College Laboratory Technician | 101 | 17% |
| Non-Teaching Adjunct | 207 | 19% |
| Continuing Education Teacher | 113 | 13% |
| CLIP and CUNY Start Instructor | 62 | 44% |
Drawing winners
The union was proud to see such a high turnout, nearly 9,000 members, for the survey in such a busy time. The following members received $100 gift certificates in a random drawing of survey participants: Alessandra Peralta-Avila, Borough of Manhattan Community College, CLT Debbie Sonu, Hunter College, Associate Professor Margaret Fiore, John Jay College, Adjunct Lecturer Victoria O’Shea, Queensborough Community College, HE Assistant James Angeli, City College of New York, HE Associate
