• Question: do you think the money you get paid is enough for the amount of work you do and what you do?

    Asked by anon-235986 to Tom, Rachel, Priya, Jessica, Dan, Beatrice on 10 Mar 2020.
    • Photo: Tom Gallagher-Mitchell

      Tom Gallagher-Mitchell answered on 10 Mar 2020:

      So this is a topical question in HE sector right now. I enjoy my job and the work I do but if we broke this down into every little detail we could be paid more as academics. The issue here is when we conflate value with money, I value my role as a teacher and researcher but the job isnt really a 9-5 model in what we have to achieve from this, and there are a number of competing pressures. There is information around this here if you are interested in what the current strikes are about https://www.ucu.org.uk/media/10715/Our-four-fights/pdf/ucu_four-fights-explainer.pdf

      Saying this every job has its own set of demands and challenges that cant necessarily be addressed by how much you get paid.

    • Photo: Priya Silverstein

      Priya Silverstein answered on 10 Mar 2020:

      I find this hard to answer because I don’t believe there’s a way of quantifying amount or quality of work in money or time. I get paid enough to support me and my wife while she’s doing her masters, so that’s good enough for me.

    • Photo: Beatrice Hayes

      Beatrice Hayes answered on 11 Mar 2020:

      At the moment, definitely not :’) But as a PhD student, you just have to budget carefully and watch your pennies. Once I have officially graduated and am a doctor, I will earn a lot more! But honestly, I love my work and as long as I earn enough to live comfortably then that’s fine by me. Enjoyment of my job and having good mental health and wellbeing is more important to me than pay.

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