Teaching assistants nationwide want better pay, benefits

Teaching assistants at many universities are demanding equitable pay and benefits, saying their low-paying jobs consist of teaching more than assisting.

The American Federation of Teachers released a set of standards last week for the employment of graduate research and teaching assistants at Ohio State University as an example for the rest of the nation to follow.

"What we do is put these standards out there," said Jamie Horwitz, spokesman for the federation. "When issues about graduate students come up, these can be used as blueprints to get better contracts and laws."

Typical TA duties vary but include teaching classes, leading discussion sections, supervising laboratory sections and grading papers and exams in a course.

TAs also fill in for professors if they are absent, and some graduate students at Ohio State are even teaching upper-level courses.

"More courses are being taught by graduate students who carry full loads," said Darold Johnson, legislative and political action director of the Ohio Federation of Teachers. "This is an issue of indentured servitude."

At UNC minimum stipends for TAs were increased to $5,500 per semester for the fall of 2004, said Stephanie Schmitt, assistant dean for academics at UNC Graduate School.

But the stipends might not be enough to cover all costs for some TAs.

"Teacher assistants work really hard for what they get paid," said Kerry Bloom, a UNC professor of biology. "The state stipend is embarrassingly low."

Although some say the stipends are too low, there are other benefits to being a TA.

"Many receive a tuition waiver, but I can't say all do," said Betsy Brown, UNC-system assistant vice president for academic affairs.

But Horwitz said TAs are not treated fairly because a university is a large employer.

"It is not realistic that someone will be able to bargain with a national employer for better employment," he said.

In order to bring about change, many universities have organized unions.

"In the Big 10, Ohio State is the only (university) which provides full-time employees the right to organize and not part-time," Johnson said.

Ohio State is still trying to organize teaching assistants and adjunct professors, but the university has run into difficulties.

And, although Ohio State has seen a 50 percent increase in TA wages for this year, pay is not all TAs want, Johnson said.

"Working conditions are our number one issue, health care number two and wages number three."

Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.