It is, of course, impossible to place a monetary value on any human being
much less that person's work.

Unless one is with a federal, state, or sometimes municipal museum (where
salary scales tend to be set based on compensation in other govt. functions)
I believe it's difficult to make a decent living in the museum field except
at the senior levels.  And at those levels, it's hard to determine when
one's workday ends, and "personal" time actually starts.

(I remember a state personnel analyst objecting to my thought that a degreed
professional historical interpreter ought to be paid more than a toll taker
on the turnpike.  But there is so much more stress taking tolls, he replied.
Try it sometime, he added.)  It took a couple of years to win that battle.


-----Original Message-----
From: Sophia C Vackimes <[log in to unmask]>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.museum-l
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Tuesday, July 28, 1998 6:18 PM
Subject: Re: The Value of an M.A. - $7.25/hr?


>I think $7.50 is not demeaning.  It is obscene.  At U.C. Berkeley without
>even a bachelors degree I used to make $10.00 an hour and more.  Now with
>a masters (which I have begun to hide on my resume) I am applying for jobs
>that are under $10. Jobs that take months to hear about a decision being
>made, and mind you; I live in New York City which is supposed to be a
>museum panacea.
>Sophia Vackimes