The need to improve the formation of the modern academic employment contract

Faculty policy and procedure manuals are an integral part of academic employment contracts. Yet their importance is underestimated by instructors and educational institutions alike. They are usually referred to in crisis situations only, when the relationship between an educator and a school has begun to deteriorate. It is at this point that faculty allege a violation of their rights and turn to written documentation to support their contention. Colleges and universities, who as the drafters of these documents are thoroughly familiar with their contents, are forced to respond by using the handbooks as shields against legal claims. An academic's failure to review faculty manuals at the outset of employment experience leaves himself uninformed as to his rights as an employee and vulnerable to attacks regarding his responsibilities as a professional.