Political Sociology and the Fate of the Precariat Professor

Abstract

The sociologists’ mandate is to recognize and research the social, political, and economic forces that influence people, and to advocate for the disadvantaged among us. If sociologists want to fulfill the whole mandate, they should also be willing to advocate for the precariat professor. These contingent workers teach part-time, are employed on a short-term basis, receive low pay and no health benefits, and have little input into the governance of the institutions in which they work; in short, precarity. To advocate for the precariat professor is to advocate for reform of the academic system. We argue that all sociologists should learn from their feminist colleagues in advocating for the precariat among us. Political sociology has a special role to play in reforming academia; as students of the intersection of society and politics, and as the primary researchers of social movements, they could be at the forefront of radical sociology, public engagement, and activism.