I am pleased to see this subject being raised.  I suppose, however, somebody may
soon decide it's inappropriate for this site, people will flounce off the list,
and discussion will be terminated.  It's a pattern. I will not make or respond
to ad hominem attacks or other abuse.
Dr. King must be wondering what she did to bring this all down, but it's touched
a nerve.The truth is that archaeology and CRM wages are lousy for most people,
and particularly for those trying to break into the career.   I'm not qualified
to comment on academic research grants, but I do know something about CRM.
 Although we would all like to believe that quality of work should be the main
criterion for clients when selecting CRM companies, we all know that money
talks.  This is especially disheartening in the case of those Federal clients
who always make noises about balancing various factors in order to get "the best
value for the Government", but who (as many of us can attest) very often go
low-bid anyway.  Of course this tends to be even more pronounced in the private
sector.  In such an environment employers cannot set company wages so high as to
price themselves out of the market.  If they want to remain in business, that
is.

So what can we do?  One thing CRM companies cannot do is to get together to fix
wages and prices.  That is illegal, and rightly so.  There are however a couple
of other avenues.

One would be to encourage Federal agencies (who essentially can fix wages) to
use Service Contract Act wage determinations as much as possible.  In my
experience these are usually higher than prevailing CRM rates for a given area,
at least for lower pay grades.  This has the effect not only of putting more
money in people's pockets, but also of leveling the playing-field as far as
proposals are concerned, in that level and quality of effort are able to take a
more prominent role in decision-making. A knock-on effect may be seen through
the industry as a result.

The other route is better quality control.  The Federal archaeology program in
the U.S. depends very heavily on State Historic Preservation Offices to ensure
that work meets specific standards.  Federal agencies do not have to agree to
SHPO requirements, but most of them reflexively do.  So we need really strong,
well-resourced, Historic Preservation Offices. They need to be systematically
staffed by highly qualified, experienced, and realistically paid, CRM
professionals who are at professional grades in their State governments high
enough to command political respect.  With those conditions in place we would, I
think, see a greater insistence on high quality work.

What does high quality work require? Skilled people, effectively managed.
What do skill and effective management command? Higher remuneration.

Please do not take this as a denigration by me of people who currently work in
HPO's. Those in the HPO's I'm familiar with are highly dedicated to what they
do, are horribly overworked, underpaid, sometimes subject to political
pressures, and sometimes, I suspect, find their work frustrating and
under-appreciated.  What I am suggesting is that we look into ways to raise
their profile and authority so that poor quality work, done at cut-throat costs,
is a thing of the past.

Two other things:

If you are qualified to Register as an RPA, please do it.

If your CRM firm isn't in ACRA, please consider joining.


Ian Burrow




On September 13, 2013 at 9:35 AM Daryl Armour <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> I wanted to change the subject title so as not to pull Julia King's initial
> email into the wrong direction. I am not trying to bash anyone here, but these
> are just my observations and thoughts (shooting from the hip with little
> coffee). Also, first post on the list,
>
> print( "Hello World!" ):
>
> Its unfortunate, but its an ever more reoccurring trend within CRM. When you
> think about it, it shouldn't come as a surprise when you hear people speaking
> out about the uselessness of Anthropology at the public/governmental level
> (for example Governor Scott). We have been undervaluing people with a BA, and
> in some cases up to an MA, in our own profession for so long I feel it was
> only a matter of time before it began to be mirrored in the policy-makers
> sentiments. I couldn't say I know the cause for this as I have nowhere near
> the amount of years put into this profession as most on this list. On one
> level, you have those who paint Archaeology with a romantic brush, on the
> other hand, one can then look at those within the lower levels of CRM who can
> barely afford to pay their bills, nor have the opportunity to get a house or
> raise a family.
>
> I am not saying that money is everything, and I hate that response to anyone
> who discusses money and archaeology, of course everyone should do what they
> find fulfillment out of and that is why all of us are here. But shouldn't you
> at least expect to have a "normal" life in which you can actually pay your
> bills and go out to eat once in a while? I can only assume at SOME (not all)
> academic and private-sector levels, its the big business mantra of
> "Efficiency! Efficiency! Efficiency! Profit! Profit! Profit!" coming through,
> mixed with "make the best out of what you've been given."
>
> There, I said it, please don't blacklist me!
>
> On Sep 13, 2013, at 12:53 AM, Richard Lundin wrote:
>
> > Julie:
> >
> > That is ridiculous! With the new proposed MINIMUM WAGE + benefits +
> > required employer supplied healthcare they could do better at McDonalds.
> > This is a waste of the time and money getting a BA\BS in
> > Anthropology\Archaeology. When I am asked how to get into archaeology, I
> > say DON'T!- UNLESS YOU HAVE AN EXCELLENT MATH AND SCIENCE BACKGROUND AND
> > CAN GET INTO ARCHAEOSCIENCE (I.E. ARCHAEOGEOPHYSICS, ARCHAEOCHEMISTRY OR
> > FORENSIC ARCHEOLOGY!
> >
> > My Two Cents!
> >
> > Richard J. Lundin BA, MA, RPA, ISAP, AIPG
> > Consulting Historical Archaeologist & Archaeogeophysicist
> >
> >
> > On Thu, Sep 12, 2013 at 5:12 PM, King, Julia <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> >> Dear HISTARCHers,
> >>
> >> St. Mary's College of MD is searching for a Project Archaeologist and crew
> >> (3) for a major survey focused on documenting Piscataway Indian landscapes
> >> in Southern Maryland. More information about the positions can be found at
> >> this link: http://www.smcm.edu/hr/employment.html#assist_arch. The
> >> positions will remain open until filled. The project begins on or about
> >> October 15.
> >>
> >> Julie King
> >>