doi:10.3138/ctr.190.018 ctr 190 spring 2022 77 A Round Table Conversation | VIEWS AND REVIEWS A Round Table Conversation on the State of Hiring and Labour in Theatre and Performance Studies in Canada By Benjamin Gillespie, Signy Lynch, and Hannah Rackow Featuring Lisa Aikman, Susan Bennett, David Owen, Marlis Schweitzer, and Kim Solga Te Emerging Scholars Task Force was created in 2019 to investi- gate and assess how the Canadian Association for Teatre Research (CATR) supports emerging scholars in theatre and performance studies. As part of this process, we conducted a nationwide survey of recent graduates and hires in the feld in 2020. 1 Te survey aimed to assess the current state of the feld in response to ongo- ing concerns about the labour prospects that outgoing graduates face. We received a total of sixty-seven responses from individuals with terminal degrees. Some of the key trends we drew from the survey include: 1. Te precarity of contingent faculty: Te vast majority (85 per cent) of contingent faculty surveyed reported doing part-time work (in many cases holding multiple positions) in order to support their current careers. Tis is coupled with a lack of job security and lack of advancement within ses- sional positions. 2. Concerns about equity in hiring and labour: Beyond the ever-present concern about the lack of tenure-track positions compared to qualifed gradu- ates, the majority of tenure-track faculty report holding contingent positions before their current ones, raising serious questions about who can af- ford to become tenured and equity issues around hiring in the feld. 3. Growing expectations of what’s required for jobs: Sixty-fve per cent of tenure-track faculty surveyed reported that the postings for their current jobs indicated that artistic experience was either required or preferred. If the majority of tenure-track positions require both theory and practice, this suggests that departments may not be adequately preparing PhD students in particular for the job market. Prompted by the survey results, we convened a round table on the “State of Hiring and Labour in the Field” at the 2021 vir- tual CATR conference. Te discussion focused on the precarity of contingent labour, hiring practices within the university, fnancial cuts and large-scale threats to arts and humanities departments across the country, alt-academic and non-academic careers, and preparation for the future as a graduate student and/or emerging scholar. We asked a variety of panellists with advanced degrees in theatre and performance studies to speak to the state of hiring and labour in the feld. After much consideration, based on feedback we received about the increased risk of repercussions that IBPOC folks face when contributing to these kinds of discussions in the feld, the committee decided not to actively recruit a scholar of colour to the panel. Accordingly, while the panel discussion was rich and generative, it does not speak to how race plays a role in graduates’ experiences in the academy and/or job market. Te remarks from our panellists and attendees generated a number of crucial questions for the future of the feld: https://ctr.utpjournals.press/doi/pdf/10.3138/ctr.190.018 - Wednesday, May 04, 2022 4:16:19 PM - IP Address:2603:7000:9b40:6b:5867:5df4:ad62:d347