Just realized which post you were replying to, but the point stands that contingent faculty as a whole tend to get lumped together in both discourse and actual labor practices
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Oh yeah, I agree with you. I meant that I don't think JBSA knows much about academic labor based on what he's saying here. The statement "Part of the problem is that [current adjuncts] are overqualified" makes me think he doesn't know many college teachers or why they go into their careers.
Nothing, I was pointing out that what you're describing is a lecturer, not an adjunct. The word "adjunct" describes the relationship between the worker and the institution, not the worker's CV.
People who adjunct *want* to teach as a rule or they'd do literally anything else, because the pay is awful and the working relationship is exploitative.
I don't think either "lecturer" or "adjunct" have as consistent of a definition as you think. My sense is that you're envisioning a tenure-eligible permanent position that only requires teaching and doesn't require a PhD. That describes "lecturer" only at some institutions.
Yes, "adjunct" describes the employment relationship, "lecturer" is a position. What I meant to point out is that, if 70% of [whatever you want to call university teachers] are adjunct, that means only 30% of professors have any sort of job security beyond the next few months.
Now that you can quibble that adjunct necessarily means no tenure or consistent work, but the broader point I was making is that it's fine to have a separate role in a university for people who only teach. Not every position has to be an assistant prof., which is a wish I often see from academics.
FTR, I was a grad student at one point. I left without getting my PhD but plenty of my friends are now professors and I was "in academia" (either a grad student or working towards that) for nearly 9 years.
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You don't need a PhD when what you are primarily doing is teaching undergrads.
I think my second post makes it clear that I meant the same kind of job you (apparently?) do.
https://bsky.app/profile/johnbrownstan.bsky.social/post/3l3v6dfmhuf2l