John F. Kennedy may have said it best: "Modern cynics and skeptics … see no harm in paying those to whom they entrust the minds of their children a smaller wage than is paid to those to whom they entrust the care of their plumbing."
Seeing as students are the canvas on which professors paint, you'd assume the California State University administration would provide the professors with polished brushes and vibrant colors. But in reality, most CSU educators feel they're paid less than what they deserve - 94 percent voted "yes" for a two-day strike, according to reports released yesterday.
In January, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger released his budget plans for 2007, including cuts to the CSU budget - again. The CSU board of trustees was forced to deny faculty pay raises and add a 10 percent increase in student fees. At the same time, it approved a 4 percent raise for board members and all 23 CSU presidents.
Is that fair?
The California Faculty Association board of directors certainly doesn't think so.
The CFA's proposal - a 4 percent raise this year, a .25 percent increase for the following two years and an extra .5 percent increase to underpaid faculty with several years of experience - would have at least started to bridge the gap.
But CSU officials claim the proposal can't be accepted because of a lack of funds.
Now, after almost two years of bargaining with the CSU, the CFA decided that negotiating wouldn't solve the problem. It issued its first-ever strike vote in response.
The strike is set to occur throughout CSU campuses beginning in April if a labor agreement can't be arranged with the CSU administration by Monday.
If they can't come to a reasonable agreement, this will be the largest strike held by higher-education teachers in American history. The faculty has said from the beginning it doesn't want to strike, but it will if needed - and it is needed.
Since 2002, the CSU faculty's only pay raise came in 2005. In contrast, CSU administrators received raises every year except in 2003. And in 2005, the CSU administration got a 13.8 percent raise, while the faculty had a 3.5 percent raise.
The high salaries of San Diego State President Stephen Weber and other administrators are even more troubling. Weber's current salary is now more than $272,000 - the fourth-highest among 23 CSU presidents.
Consider this: CSU tenured faculty members have been paid less than their California community college counterparts since 2003. There's little to stop CSU faculty members from leaving universities and getting jobs at local community colleges where they can easily make more money.
Schwarzenegger and CSU administrators are supposed to be looking out for the students' best interests.
But when professors are making one-sixth of their bosses' salaries, and universities still have enough money to build additions to their schools - such as SDSU's Arts and Letters building - it's obvious that something's wrong.
Do the math. The actions of the CSU administrators in repeatedly denying faculty pay raises but rewarding themselves does not add up to what the CSU claims to be its priority.
And if faculty members don't get what they're striking for, then no one wins.
Especially not the students.
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