Since the Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley in the 1960s students, educators and campus personnel have often come together to have their voices heard. While it began as dissent against Vietnam and the Academic-Industrial complex, faculty organizations continue to speak for many causes. Administrative staff are slow to respond to the complaints of one surly professor. When the issue spreads across campus however, heads begin to turn.

The current movement among organized campus groups involves poor pay and unstable working conditions. The dearth of adjunct professors and graduate student instructors has built momentum behind their belief in collective bargaining for the greater good. Even so, in 2004 the National Labor Relations Board enacted policy that graduate students were not official employees and could not unionize. This incited a frenzy of controversy which ultimately overturned the decision. While they regained their right to assemble, there is still lingering stigma on organizing in the academic community. Adjunct professors face a similar dilemma. Some feel that combining their unions with tenured professors would increase their power. But would established intellectuals really uphold adjunct interests before their own? The articles below explore the topic in detail from all angles.

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