Service Slackers

I'm not driving into the law school just for that meeting.

Sorry, that's my day off.

I didn't ask to be on that committee and prefer not to serve.

Whatever course of action others decide to take is fine with me; you don't need me there.

Attending a meeting at that time disrupts my writing block.

I don't work well with others.

If I start engaging in service work, the dean might ask me to do more.

I'm paid to teach and to write; let others do committee work.

Most of us have one or more colleagues who shirk committee service, which can lead to this inequitable result:  those who do serve are asked to do more, and those who resist serving get their wish.

What's the remedy?  A pay cut?  A private tongue-lashing?  An increased teaching load?  Or might circumstances justify the avoidance of committee work (e.g., the colleague who consistently out-publishes the overwhelming majority of his or her colleagues)?

I'm curious to know how your administration addresses this issue.

 

Comments

[Kevin Jon Heller]

I, for one, would happily trade my administrative duties for an extra class per year!

[Jason Mazzone]

If you're not a very dedicated teacher and you don't publish then service seems to be the only thing left to justify your salary. So it would seem obvious that those who can't teach and who don't write would take on a large share of a school's service needs. Things hardly work out this way, though, because those who are energetic teachers and active scholars are also typically the ones who are leading the committees, running the symposia and other events, participating in workshops, and heading up initiatives. The risk in this arrangement, though, is that service needs can easily expand because of the willingness of the energetic to serve.