To promote the Cultural Resource field as a professional discipline and to increase our capacity to sustain our ability to support our communities, we must advocate for cultural resource professionals to receive equitable compensation.
On June 14, please set aside time on your calendar from 3-4pm EST to email the following organizations:
American Alliance of Museums via bleonard@aam-us.org UPDATE: AAM will require compensation information as of November 14, 2022
American Cultural Resources Association via amanda@acra-crm.org UPDATE: ACRA’s board voted on June 29, 2022 to amend their job board policies to require compensation information!
We are asking these organizations to do the following:
Require compensation information for all part-time and full-time positions shared on their respective job boards
To not allow any unpaid positions to be posted on their job board.
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1.New York City and Colorado have passed legislation to require compensation transparency for job opening descriptions. Oregon is currently considering passing similar legislation. Let’s make sure cultural resource job boards are legally compliant!
2. Unpaid internships devalue all preservation professional positions.
3. Unpaid internships limit professional development opportunities to the few instead of the many.
4. Statistically women and people of color are less likely to negotiate salary. Not disclosing salary in a job listing puts these individuals at a disadvantage and perpetuates the wage gap.
5. If you are an organization looking to hire someone, you will be starting the relationship out with full honesty and transparency. You’ll also generate an applicant pool that will confidently be interested in accepting this position knowing that the compensation will provide a sustainable income.
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Sample Letter 1:
Dear >Insert Organization Name<,
Thank you for providing an accessible platform for preservation professionals to seek jobs. If the cultural sector wants equality we can no longer support unpaid internships and we must elevate the standards for job listings. Please modify your job board to no longer allow unpaid internships/fellowships and to require the posting of salary ranges.
For years the cultural sector has discussed the negative implications of unpaid internships and it is now time to stop this practice. Unpaid internships systematically devalue all preservation professionals’ work and ensure only a limited number individuals can pursue entry level positions in the field. If your organization believes, as it has said in the past, that the cultural sector should diversify who it hires; this is a fundamental step.
Adding salary ranges is also integral to salary equity. Women and people of color are statistically less likely to negotiate, thus not sharing a salary rage furthers the wage gap. These standards not only benefit the job seeker, but they will also benefit the employer. Job seekers will not waste their time on job applications if they do not know if the job will provide an income needed to take care of themselves and/or their family. I was told recently by someone who has helped hire preservation positions for their workplace " I've seen this first hand with our job applicants- when we list a range- especially a competitive range- we get better quality applicants. Hands. Down."
Please amend your job board submission standards for the betterment of the cultural sector. For more information, please read the following articles >Insert Links for Additional Information<.
Sincerely,
>Insert Your Name<
Sample Letter 2:
Dear >Insert Organization Name<
It is important for >Insert Organization Name< to acknowledge its place as a leader in the cultural resource field. As a leader >Insert Organization Name< has >insert an example or two of how they have been a leader (ex: hosting annual trainings, managing certifications/accreditations, etc.)<.
Based on >Insert Organization Name<‘s history of setting professional standards (indirectly|directly though their work), >Insert Organization Name< can set the standard for job boards and employers will comply. This is not an anecdotal stance; this is based on job boards managed by the National Council on Public History, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and others in the cultural resource sector that changed their policies in 2020. Their policy shifts have led to an increase in salary transparency within certain sectors of the cultural resource field over the past 12+ months.
>Insert Organization Name< ‘s suggestion for salary disclosure on the website does not acknowledge the group’s power. Your job board has proven itself as a valuable resource for both job seekers and organizations looking to hire. Studies have shown requiring compensation information benefits both. While I can acknowledge that compensation may not legally be disclosed in RFPs dependent on funder, none of my research has shown that to be true for part/full time positions. It’s also worth noting that Colorado and New York City have both past legislation to require compensation information in job descriptions for companies based in or workers based in those places. Oregon is considering similar legislation at this time.
Please consider the power dynamics of the cultural resource field and >Insert Organization Name<‘s ability to set the standard for job boards.
Thank you for your time and consideration,
>Insert Your Name<
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1.You’re Not Serious About Equity If You Don’t Post Salaries
2. When you don’t disclose salary range on a job posting, a unicorn loses its wings
3. If Culture Sector Employees Want Equality, Post Salary and Benefits With Job Descriptions
4. Salary Is Most Important Part of Job Ad
5. Take the National Emerging Museum Professionals Network (NEMPN) Paid Internships Pledge
6. Pay Equity: Performative or Palpable
7. Reimagining the Internship to Promote Racial Equity
8. Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment in History Organizations
Thank you for choosing to be a part of the labor equity movement in the cultural resource field. Challenging existing constructs is brave and I applaud you for taking the leap to help make change happen.
This post will be updated if either job board amends their posting requirements
In 2022, four job boards have changed their requirements thanks to our advocacy efforts:
American Alliance of Museums; UPDATE: AAM will require compensation information as of November 14, 2022.
American Cultural Resources Association; UPDATE: On June 29, 2022 the board voted to require compensation information and to not allow unpaid internships on their job board.
The Register of Professional Archaeologists; UPDATE: On March 15,2022 the board voted to require compensation information and to not allow unpaid internships on their job board.
Association for Preservation Technology; UPDATE: As of February, 2022, compensation is now a requirement for all positions listed on the APTI job board. “APTI is committed to equity, diversity and opportunity within the preservation community; in keeping with this commitment, we require that posting include salary or compensation information (a minimum or a range is acceptable).”
In 2021, one job board changed their requirements thanks to our advocacy efforts:
Society of Architectural Historians; “To support labor equity in architectural history and related fields, as of November 24, 2022, the Society of Architectural Historians requires all job postings in the SAH Career Center to include salary information (may be compensation, salary range, or minimum salary). Unpaid internships will not be shared on the SAH website or in the Career Center.” Link to learn more on SAH’s decision process.
In 2020, five job boards changed their requirements thanks to our advocacy efforts:
Preservenet; UPDATE: As of October 2020, all positions listed must include compensation.
Preservation Directory; UPDATE: Preservation Directory is in the process of updating their language for job board submissions.
National Council on Public History; UPDATE: As of September 9, 2020 all positions listed must include a salary, salary range, hourly rate, salary code, or some other measure of compensation.
National Trust for Historic Preservation; UPDATE: The National Trust for Historic Preservation has modified their job board for available NTHP positions to include salary information. Their FORUM job board as of October 13, 2020 now requires “all listings to include at least a salary range (or a minimum salary)” and they “will no longer accept uncompensated internships for listing.”
The Historic Preservation Professionals group on Facebook was not a part of the original list of job boards to be petitioned for change. As of December 2020, the group moderators voted to require compensation for part time or full time jobs and to no longer allow unpaid internships.
This page will be updated when the respective job board policies have been modified.