Inform & Influence S&T Policy 11: Postdocs are Science’s Unsung Heroes and Insufficiently Compensated Laborers

Your practical guide to the victories and struggles in Science and Technology (S&T) policy and how to make a difference.

This is National Postdoc Appreciation Week. So, I’m taking this opportunity to address these unsung heroes and insufficiently compensated laborers in this week’s Inform & Influence S&T Policy newsletter. And if you’re someone who mentors a postdoc, be sure to show them some appreciation.

In case you don’t know, here’s the definition of a postdoc from the National Postdoc Association:

“Postdoctoral scholars ("postdocs") are individuals in a defined period of mentored training following the achievement of their terminal degrees (e.g., Ph.D., M.D., M.Eng.).”

In the United States, there are approximately 72,000 postdocs at National Postdoc Association institutions. They primarily work in academia but also work in industry, national laboratories, government, and non-profit research organizations.?

Here’s the topics I’m addressing in this newsletter

(1) Societal Progress Catalysts: Postdocs are Science’s Unsung Heroes

(2) Societal Progress Roadblocks: Postdocs are Science’s Insufficiently Compensated Laborers

(3) Where You Can Make a Difference: National Postdoc Association

Societal Progress Catalysts: Postdocs are Science’s Unsung Heroes

Postdocs play an essential role in helping science and technology contribute to society.? A typical postdoc will:

• Enhance the intellectual rigor of their institutions by bringing fresh ideas and perspectives to societal challenges where research can contribute.
• Contribute to scientific discoveries that can lead to innovations and insights that benefit society by undertaking significant portions of the research work.
• Cultivate the next generation of scientists and researchers by teaching and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students. An interesting study looked at the impact of PIs and postdocs on students' research experience, which supports these societal benefits. It found that

“PIs’ [principal investigators] laboratory and mentoring activities do not significantly predict students’ skill development trajectories, but the engagement of postdocs and senior graduate students in laboratory interactions do.”

• Benefit local economic development and job creation by establishing emerging companies that move research from the lab to the marketplace.?

As stated in the National Academies Enhancing the Postdoctoral Experience for Scientists and Engineers report that I worked on decades ago:

“Institutions benefit in many ways from the presence and activities of post-docs. Most importantly, their work supports the overall intellectual strength of the institution. Successful postdocs help plan and carry out the institution’s research programs, build alliances and intellectual bridges to other institutions, raise the reputation of laboratories and departments, mentor graduate students, and increase the inflow of grant support.

In return, institutions have the responsibility to support their postdocs with adequate compensation and benefits, a supportive infrastructure and working conditions, appropriate institutional recognition and standing, and mechanisms for advancing their careers and finding subsequent positions.”

Societal Progress Roadblocks: Postdocs are Science’s Insufficiently Compensated Laborers

I suspect that most research leadership respects postdocs for their knowledge and their hardwork but tend to view the postdoctoral experience as a “right of passage” and care little about their future career prospects.? They are so focused on their research that they don’t necessarily consider their personal needs. Here are some of the challenges faced by postdocs:

Postdoctoral researchers in the United States face a variety of challenges. Among these are

• Financial insecurity due to low wages and employment uncertainty.
• Work-life balance with expectations for long hours makes it challenging to establish a personal life outside of work, particularly a family due to financial insecurity.
• Professional development geared to academic positions (despite the lack of such positions) leads them to be inadequately prepared for non-academic positions in industry, government, or non-governmental organizations.
• Cultural, language, and visa barriers are often a challenge for international postdocs, leading to feelings of isolation, lack of career opportunities, and possibly being taken advantage of by their mentors.

Nature Postdoc Survey Results

For the past several years, Nature has conducted a survey of postdocs about their experience.? While they noted some positive trends, Nature found that:

“Overall, however, the data continue to paint postdocs as academia’s drudge labourers: overworked, underpaid, appointed on precarious short-term contracts and lacking recognition for their efforts. Patterns of discrimination and harassment have not changed since 2020. One-quarter of respondents report having experienced either, or both, in their current or previous postdoc. Respondents highlight bullying as the most common form of harassment — encountered by 52% of those who had experienced discrimination or harassment – with managers, supervisors or principal investigators being the most commonly cited perpetrators.”

And this telling quote from the article:

“Fundamentally, I do not think the postdoc experience has changed,” says Michael Matrone, associate director of the office of career and professional development at the University of California, San Francisco. “What I think has changed, catalysed by the pandemic, is a greater awareness of and intolerance for the oppressive and exploitative systems that exist in academia.”

Recommendations to Enhance the Postdoc Experience

To respond to challenges such as these, the National Postdoc Association makes the following recommendations in a 2023 report:

• “Pay postdocs a competitive wage with comprehensive benefits?
• Provide proper institutional support for postdoc offices and associations?
• Collect data on postdoc demographics and outcomes?
• Provide a postdoc handbook transparently outlining institutional policies.”?

Here are some additional recommendations from a 2014 National Academies report that I suspect are still true today:

• “Postdoctoral appointments for a given postdoctoral researcher should total no more than 5 years in duration, barring extraordinary circumstances.
• The title of “postdoctoral researcher” should be applied only to those people who are receiving advanced training in research.?
• Host institutions and mentors should, beginning at the first year of graduate school, make graduate students aware of the wide variety of career paths available for Ph.D. recipients, and explain that postdoctoral positions are intended only for those seeking advanced research training.
• The postdoctoral position should not be viewed by graduate students or principal investigators as the default step after the completion of doctoral training.?
• Postdoctoral salaries should be appropriately higher where regional cost of living, disciplinary norms, and institutional or sector salary scales dictate higher salaries.? In addition, host institutions should provide benefits to postdoctoral researchers that are appropriate to their level of experience and commensurate with benefits given to equivalent full-time employees.”

My Take

Of particular concern in my review of this survey is that over half of the respondents have been in their postdoc for more than two years.? That implies to me postdocs are no longer a training experience but rather a real “job” where research leaders are taking advantage of a postdoc’s willingness to stay at low pay rather than hiring them as a researcher with regular employment support and rights.

I’ve been thinking about this challenge for decades and have come to the conclusion that all postdocs funded through federal funds should be required to receive the same compensation and benefits as someone employed in the federal government in a “GS” level position.?

This accounts for several challenges.?The GS payscale has standard “steps” that a postdoc could be assigned as they gain experience. So, the longer a postdoc stays, the greater their compensation.?(Though they shouldn't stay too long before moving into a permanent position.)

In addition, the federal government has locality pay that accounts for differences in the cost of living (as a postdoc in California, for example, has much higher expenses than in West Virginia).? There are also a standard set of benefits.

Today, the NIH provides an informal standard for postdoc compensation for many universities.? However, as discussed in the previous Inform and Influence newsletter on this topic, the NIH leadership was unwilling to provide the pay and benefits recommended by its own advisory committee.? This action plus literally decades of recommendations from expert committees recommending changes that are not implemented by either public or private organizations implies to me that congressional legislation may be the only way to fix this long-standing problem and provide a national standard that is fair to postdocs and recognizes the contribution they make to society.?

How YOU Can ENGAGE in S&T Policy: National Postdoc Association

As I discussed in a previous edition of this newsletter, I began working on the topic of postdocs long ago and remember when the National Postdoc Association (NPA) was formed in 2002. At that time, no organization represented postdocs, yet they faced many challenges, including inadequate pay and lack of health benefits.? Other challenges were inappropriate working conditions.? For example, I particularly remember one case where a pregnant postdoc was fired because of her condition.

The NPA’s mission is “To improve the postdoctoral experience by supporting a culture of inclusive connection. At the individual, organizational, and national levels, we facilitate enhanced professional growth, raise awareness, and collaborate with stakeholders in the postdoctoral community.” Here’s their vision:“We envision an inclusive community where all postdocs are empowered, valued, recognized, and supported in their current and future endeavors.

Today, they have over 20,000 individuals and 230 organizational members.? Sad to say there are still challenges for postdocs.? You can learn how to advocate, share your postdoc story, network with others in your situation, and take on leadership opportunities as a member. If you’re interested in joining, here’s the link.

Thank YOU for reading!?

My name is Debbie Stine, the founder of the Science & Technology (S&T) Policy Academy, which offers workshops for organizations, “done for you” policy analysis, and career, leadership, and business coaching services.??

I spent over 30 years in Washington DC, working for the Obama White House as executive director of the President’s Council on Science and Technology (PCAST), an S&T policy specialist at the Congressional Research Service (a think tank for Congress), and 18 years at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, directing studies on innumerable S&T policy topics.??

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See you next week for yet more compelling science and technology policy news and insights. Debbie