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Inevitable-Place9950 t1_j9nc666 wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in Striking Temple University graduate students overwhelming vote down proposed contract by diatriose

They’re demanding to be treated more like employees. The reality of working half-time is that it pays less than full-time and also that it makes it easier to take coursework and study. It also rarely comes with benefits, let alone benefits of an equivalent value to tax-free tuition. And if students were leaving for full-time work, Temple would have more incentive to pay better; but it’s not that likely that they’ll choose full-time work and tens of thousands in bills and loans over half-time work, free tuition, and a smattering of loans.

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[deleted] t1_j9neoh7 wrote

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Inevitable-Place9950 t1_j9o5qn4 wrote

Their pay rate is well over the US median income. What they’re requesting is a pay rate equivalent to an $87,000 full-time salary. They’re not demanding full-time hours; they want half-time work and full-time credit loads. Again- I don’t blame them for demanding Temple keep up with competitors but there is a huge difference between those who are paid poverty wages and those who choose to work for the school half-time so they can primarily be students. And that distinction easily saves them $12k in taxes each year, so they probably don’t want to lose it.

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[deleted] t1_j9oib79 wrote

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Inevitable-Place9950 t1_j9okibf wrote

Of course they’re full-time students. And I’d look at adjunct pay before you assume it would cost more than $20k to hire TAs. If the math is wrong, show me where.

The minimum stipend (STEM students tend to earn more) is $19.5k for 9 months of half-time work would be $39k full-time. That would be $4,333 a month or $52k if they worked full-time all year. They don’t pay FICA on assistantships, a 7.65% tax break, or income tax on waived tuition.

They’re requesting a $32,800 minimum for half-time work for 9 months. $65,600 at full-time is $7,289 a month or $87,466 for 12 months- with the same tax break.

That pay rate is in line with and in some cases higher than the starting salary of an assistant professor who already earned their PhD and it’s well above a poverty rate. While they are making a great case that they deserve more, it’s disrespectful to compare them to people who are living in poverty unless they’re actually supporting a family of 3 or 4 on that stipend alone.

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[deleted] t1_j9olonl wrote

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Inevitable-Place9950 t1_j9p4pc8 wrote

Yes. It’s disrespectful to all the people who are working full-time at schools for lower pay rates and no tuition benefits and to people working in essential jobs barely above minimum wage to treat their plights as comparable to students getting free tuition in addition to a stipend of at least $25 an hour for part-time work. They’ve opted to work part-time to be full-time students, like thousands of undergrads do who do not get paid a higher rate for that decision. They also have the option to find full-time work and go to school part-time, or work part-time elsewhere while studying full-time. The financial outlook of those options aren’t great either for most fields.

Two things can be true: the students are justified in asking for better compensation and they’re in a much better position than people who are living in or near poverty.

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