I never intended to say it was perfectly fair but if someone is a capable and well-rounded scholar and teacher in a relevant discipline then at some point they’ll find a place willing to hire them to a tenure track or full-time position. They might have to stoop to Kansas State or Fargo Community College but a job’s a job and it's a lot easier to find a better one when you have one to begin with. If they’ve exhausted all avenues of full-time employment and can’t find such a position it’s probably because they were less qualified than others or there’s not enough demand for their specialty to justify more than an adjunct position and compensation, i.e. byzantine basket weaving is only offered in spring semesters of odd years and even then only five people sign up. If they do feel as though they’re undervalued then they should unionize and fight for better wages and if that doesn’t work out, maybe learn a trade or drive for Uber. Would anyone be tying themselves up in knots to explain and excuse under-employed accountants or attorneys?
