And there you have it: fairness and equity

I suppose it could have happened anywhere, but it happened at the College of the Siskiyous at a Board of Trustees meeting.  The board was debating whether or not all members of the board should get medical benefits through the college that, for historical reasons, some had and others didn't.  Despite the fact that providing these benefits to board members was opposed by all constituency groups at the college, the board argued it was about having "a level playing field" and treating all board members "fairly and equally."

The college's Faculty Association President Dave Clarke pointed out, according to the Siskiyou Daily News, that

For the board to argue that it can’t adequately function unless everyone receives exactly the same compensation is philosophically inconsistent, given that it expects, and gets, otherwise from COS employees.

Not surprisingly, "adjunct faculty at COS and all college employees who do not work more than 19 hours per week do not receive any benefits."

Now you know what all-important types like Trustees are thinking when you engage them in these debates, but it is a bit shocking when they say it out loud.

Board president Penny Heilman responded to that suggestion by saying that, “The level of responsibility of board members far outweighs that of any run-of-the-mill 19 hour employee.”

A vocal response to her statement from some of those in attendance at the meeting prompted her to acknowledge that “perhaps ‘run-of-the-mill’ was the wrong phrase.”

But, she added, “you get what you pay for.”

And there you have it, fairness and equity.  Oh, the board voted in favor of granting benefits to the board mebers who didn't have have them already.

Comments

[cody1000]

someone has a medical problem.