by Geoff Fredericks

PART-TIME FACULTY AT community colleges are professional employees who aren't covered by the state's minimum wage law, the Washington Court of Appeals ruled on January 7, 2002. In a unanimous decision, the three-judge panel rejected a suit by unionized part-time faculty at a number of community colleges who claimed they are entitled to additional pay for time spent out of the classroom.

It is believed to be the first case in the nation to litigate the issue in the context of part-time community college faculty, lawyers on both sides said. A contrary decision could have cost the colleges an estimated $40 million in retroactive pay for a three-year period, according to Assistant Attorney Gen. Howard Fischer.

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