Pros

My co-workers are very bright and very nice, and I am very fortunate in my department and management (but some departments are not so nice). People are not expected to work long hours usually; but the work pace when you are there is pretty intense and there is always too much to do. Staff get free bus passes to commute to work and can take a free course after a year. Much of the work is interesting.

Some of the administrators and bosses are impressive in their capabilities and dedication and vision.

Also, it is such a large employer that the varied environments and contacts and people you get to work with can be rewarding and stimulating far beyond working for some small business or something. And of course such a large employer has both good areas to work in and bad ones.

Cons

I do like my job but I have MANY reservations about UT as an employer. Recently there is a push by top management to let go people to suck up money to put toward attracting rock-star faculty and to building a mega-expensive new building. Pay is already very low and this year there are no raises at all and in future years there are likely to be very limited wage hikes. They have used the recession as an excuse to shaft workers (while their budget actually rose a little). Promotions can be very delayed and in general there is an attitude of contempt of top management for staff and even for regular faculty and their value. The disloyalty involved in recent layoffs of some excellent people who've spent their lives devoted to the university is appalling; so there is NO REAL JOB SECURITY besides the lousy pay. Tuition for students keeps rising higher and at the same time they are cutting the value of what students get by increasing class sizes; I don't feel the administration truly cares about education but of course most faculty do. In many ways it is a crummy place to work, but at the same time if you can find a particular niche that suits you it might be OK; it is OK for me and I do like my job and co-workers and hope to continue working there for a long time; but all the same I don't feel good about a lot of things that are going on or good about UT as an employer in general. I feel that they count on so many people wanting to work at a university (not something I personally care about) that they are willing to not treat them well and count on their putting up with it.

Pay is very unequal -- most staff are poorly paid but some at the top are far overpaid and get giant raises. They ask for loyalty from employees and have pretty words but their behavior isn't pretty. A hiring freeze has resulted in much under-staffing.

Advice to Senior Management

Advice to the President: PLEASE LEAVE!!!! Your actions are atrocious!