Beth Tischler wrote:
> I have a question for the list:
> I have been reading a lot about sacrifices everyone has been making
> for their careers, which is fabulous. But to not get paid for work
> that is not volunteer, to work excessive overtime for no pay, to be
> cheated out of thousands of dollars, seems to me unprofessional.
Unfortunately, I think that it has become a part of nearly all
professions in the non-profit world. I have two school teacher friends
(one elementary, one junior college) who work 12 hour days on school
days, weekends and don't exactly have summers off. They love their jobs
and I hope that they don't burn out. One of them was given a case of
ramen for Christmas last year by another friend, BTW. It is such a "joke."
At our museum, even those of us who work full-time are still asked to
volunteer our time to work special events. I have been told that I HAVE
to volunteer for a couple of these in the past. I like my institution
and love my co-workers and the visitors. However, if I can, I still
don't want to spend my days off at work. I'm funny that way.
> ! As I have said before, I used to be an actress. There are no workers
> on earth willing to overwork for no money than actors. Yet even we had
> strict rules about the number of hours we were allowed to work and
> systems in place to make sure we got paid for our work.
I started my professional life in the theatre and even did a few
commerical and bit parts in film. (i.e. I actually made a very small
amount of money.) However, I must say, I prefer the museum field,
primarily for the intellectual stimulation and a bit of the "leaving
something for the future to learn." And, it actually pays more than
theatre. I think that us "museum folk" do a lot work for free and the
rest is at cut rates, because of the great personal satisfaction. I KNOW
that is how it is for me. There are no unions that I am aware of, and
nothing to enforce the work week hours. Missouri is a right to hire
state and an employee can be "let go" for no reason, with no legal
recourse. There are no rules. If one wants to work in a museum, that is
the situation, at the present time. Indigo has pointed out, more than
once, that a person choosing a career should research the job market and
the career itself before committing the time, energy, money, school
hours, to the pursuit of that. I couldn't agree more. I knew what I was
getting into, and I decided that the rewards were worth it.
Having worked both American theatre and London theatre and dealing with
unions, maybe instead the first thing for museums is to somehow convince
the general public that we are worth more money. Somehow, I think that
most people think that we are performing a community service and why
should they pay for that?
Wasn't there a museum recently who went on strike and tried to organize
a union? What ever happened with that?
Sincerely,
Lisa (who loves coming to work every single day, after ten years and
countless amounts of ramen.)
P.S. Ramen now comes in roast beef and roast chicken, a bit better than
the plain beef and chicken. Everything's up to date in Kansas City...
--
Lisa Shockley
Collections Technician, Union Station, Kansas City
KC Museum/Science City
Where there is Peace, there is Culture;
Where there is Culture, there is Peace.” (Nicholas Roerich)
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