Greetings, bosses!

17 Comments

1. AnonymousJune 28,2023 at 3:20PM UTC

   I have been in exactly this position, at a university. Universities are notorious for this sort of thing! I was an admin doing database development...

   The sad truth is that there is nothing that will get you there more effectively than leaving. At my university people leave and come back all the time. It may be the leverage that not only you need, but that your boss needs to get your position upgraded. When you leave, your boss should advertise the position with an accurate job description and requirements. The market will swiftly correct the situation!

   Best of luck to you.

2. AnonymousJune 28,2023 at 3:29PM UTC

   Areyou contracted through an Agency? You should talk to them about the change in roles and the need for them to relook at the job and pay range. Some agencies have agreements for pay rates and you will be paid under the job classification. As you said you took on more roles, their hands may be tied as your job was for XXX and you are now doing XXY. If not through an agency talk to management to see what you can at this time. If there is a freeze you may have to wait until the freeze is lifted and then ask for an increase and job change.

3. KatJune 28,2023 at 4:31PM UTC

   I've been in higher ed a long time at a public university. Lower pay and job stability are trade offs for (usually) good benefits and a solid retirement/pension plan. You know your uni has a hiring freeze and more budget cuts are coming down the way for all higher ed due to lower enrollments. So there's no room in your department's budget to give you the raise and better benefits you should have after working there so long. The only way you can advance at a university most times is to find a job in a different department. So if you like the place you're at and are OK with the lower pay compared to the private sector, look at other jobs that pay better or more closely match what you're doing. If you feel underpaid (almost all university support staff are) then it's time to head to the private sector. I've planned large events and taken on extra duties and am still considered admin support. If you want to get out of that sector, you'll need to look at other types of jobs. If you help manage a department (budget, HR, records) look for jobs as a coordinator or manager. If you like to plan events, look for event planning/management jobs or managing a hotel or other venue. Look at your skill set and what you like to do and go from there.

4. AnonymousJune 28,2023 at 8:10PM UTC

   You do you, it's academia, remember that. You may think your boss is the decision maker, and that is HARDLY ever the case. They can request and recommend, they can't always make that call.

5. Coach Nancie Kay ShumanJune 29,2023 at 1:07PM UTC

   I would suggest checking your local and state laws regarding the use of temporary and contractual employees. In some places, the law states that employees must be converted to permanent after a particular period of time, which you are long past. Recall that the agency you are working through has no urgency to have you hired. Also recall that working a a temp (even long term for one employer) is not seen favorably by people who you may want to work for in the future.

   I would reach out to HR and have a serious discussion about what you want to achieve, but line your ducks up to make the best case for keeping you on board.

   Good luck!

6. QJune 29,2023 at 1:52PM UTC

   Are you officially classified as a "temp?" Like others have said, I'd check into the legal limitations around staying in a temp role long term. The other thing to check into is whether or not you are perceived - or even classified - as contract by your employer. Contractors can be employed for any length of time. It just means you do work for them but are either through yourself or a contracting agency. If you are a contractor, the best angle to approach from is that you are achieving above and beyond and have contributed over a significant period of time. Not only that, contract employees are quite expensive. If you are through an agency, they get paid much more above what your paycheck is. Converting you to employee status could well save them money. Last, if you are temping "independently" (not through an agency) it is going to be difficult to get them to move and change. It could be slow going - or not at all.

7. AnonymousJune 29,2023 at 2:11PM UTC

   So if the university is a state agency, then raises are few and far between. I work at a university so I know your problem. You can look for other opportunities within the university or you can look elsewhere. We are in a hiring freeze right now too. Actually have been in for a few years, they just didn’t classify it as such. It may be that if you left your current position they might post the position, and then you can apply assuming the pay is better and it is full time.

   I’d say start looking and applying for anything that you think is interesting. As you say, you are currently employed.

8. AnonymousJune 29,2023 at 6:09PM UTC

   Thanks, all! OP here. Your advice has been amazing. I need to remember to be grateful that I actually have a job in this economy. Also, burnout can change your perception.

   To clarify on the "temp" issue - no, I am not working with a temp firm. It is a state institution. My position is grant funded which means "soft money." So when I say temporary vs permanent that is what I mean. I am surprised to find out that employees here that aren't permanent miss out on a lot of benefits that the university offers, as well as salary. But - life is about learning!

9. AnonymousJune 29,2023 at 6:16PM UTC

   Take the time to decide what you really want to do next. Apply elsewhere and when asked let them know that you are in a long term contract role with no opportunity for permanency due to freeze. It's time to take care of your own career by finding a place where you are valued financially where you want to be.

   Your manager if they are truly as good as you say will support you and let them know that when they can bring you back in a role that is more aligned with where you want to be that you would come back.

10. AnonymousJune 29,2023 at 9:39PM UTC

    Depending on where you work (state), being a temp person, doing a regular job with regular duties is illegal. Do you want to continue to work for a company that won't hire you full time or give you a title or increase you deserve and desire? Always move on and move up when things get to the fork in the road.

11. AnonymousJune 30,2023 at 1:56PM UTC

    If there is a hiring freeze then that will likely block you converting from temporary to permanent. Your best option is to start looking for a job that will pay you what you're worth.

12. AnonymousJune 30,2023 at 2:12PM UTC

    Universities are tough. They run more on politics and who you know than they run on actual skills. And the people pulling the strings always have plausible deniability. I watched a skilled leader leave, another very skilled leader from within the team take their place and succeed as an interim for eleven months, only to have a tag along (spouse to an incoming professor) get the permanent position. It was a hot mess. It happens in corporate, too, but this is only one example of many that I witnessed while at a private university. If you can’t get a permanent position at your current university, and you like the culture, start looking at others. It may be easier to start new somewhere else and then go back. When they say “old school,” they mean it in more than one way.

13. AnonymousJune 30,2023 at 3:42PM UTC

    OP here - yes, I truly am shocked that I have not been promoted. In other jobs before higher ed there was much less static. Old school is exactly the right words, and the folks that play the game truly win. The question is - do I want to play?

14. AnonymousJune 30,2023 at 6:57PM UTC

    Yeah - I left after the tag along incident on my team. I was at an Ivy League school, and the nepotism just bothered me. I know it is everywhere, but this was over the top. I think a university should try to do better, but in the end, humans are humans. Don’t accept what they are willing to give you, though!

15. Erika HepburnJune 30,2023 at 2:32PM UTC

    I worked at a university for 7 years. It was my first job out of graduate school, and I did not know any better. I stayed for the mission, the students, professional development opportunities, benefits, etc. However, the pay and job titles were never commensurate with the overwhelming workload and high-level tasks. I tried everything. I got two job offers and the talent retention offer package they gave me did not measure up, but I took it anyway. What happened to me was far less troublesome than what happened to my colleagues. I was a squeaky wheel, constantly speaking up for the long-term temp employees and other underpaid and overworked employees. The icing on the cake for me was when I was asked to lead a diversity, equity, and inclusion committee for our team and "hand hold" people to keep them from raising issues too loudly. I went to an external workshop on DEI where they shared that sometimes the greatest impact we can have on DEI and for ourselves is by quitting toxic work environments where we are undervalued, underpaid, and our voices aren't heard. I wrote a fiery resignation letter outlining the university's most egregious issues and left with no other job lined up. I left the field where I received my Master's degree and took a role at a science-based non-profit in their development team. I am now fully remote, never work more than 40 hours a week, have unlimited PTO, fantastic benefits, and I got a $20k pay bump...and I still care about the mission.I have seen your story time and time again at my previous institution and amongst my colleagues across the country. Please know that you deserve to be paid fairly for your work and to receive benefits. What these universities are doing with these long-term temp roles should be illegal, and I am deeply sorry that you are experiencing this. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you need to commiserate with someone or would like some guidance on pivoting out of higher ed.

16. AnonymousJune 30,2023 at 3:40PM UTC

    I love this perspective, and thank you! - OP

17. AnonymousJuly 3,2023 at 9:31AM UTC

    Erika, what an amazing trajectory. When we learn better we do better. Don’t blame yourself for staying as long as you did - as you said you didn’t know better at first. It’s amazing how one experience can change our trajectory by allowing us to see the possibilities and that DEI workshop sounds powerful. It bolstered you into action. I agree, leaving toxicity is often the best thing for ourselves and DEI. I would love to learn more about this workshop!