I became involved in advocacy work on behalf of part-time faculty in 1999 after working as a contract academic at the University of British Columbia for almost a decade. Thus, I was eagerly awaiting the release of Hidden Academics: Contract Faculty in Canadian Universities by Indhu Rajagopal. Although many good books and articles on the plight of sessionals have been published over the years, most are from an American point of view, so word of a book written from a Canadian perspective was welcome news.

Indhu Rajagopal was born in India in 1938 and moved to Canada in the late 1960s to study at the University of Toronto. As a youth, she became interested in the social system of her homeland and brought that interest with her to Canada. Rajagopal was surprised to find a number of similarities between the political system in India and the academic hierarchy in Canada as she made her way through the ranks from part-timer to full-timer, finally achieving tenure in the late 1980s. With her breadth of experience, she brings a comprehensive outlook to her study of contract academics in Canada.

Rajagopal introduces the reader to contract faculty across Canada - who they are, how they emerged as an underclass, and why they have become a permanent and indispensable part of academia. The author examines the effect on contract academics of creating a two-tiered system, as well as on those with whom they share a workplace. The contrast between the needs and perceptions of part-timers versus full-timers and administrators is highlighted. In a broader socio-political context, she also investigates universities' power structures.

Although the issue of contract faculty has been examined by others, Rajagopal has gone beyond the largely anecdotal format of most other works to present some hard (in more ways than one) data in support of her theses. Results are based on six national surveys conducted from 1990 to 1992. Information was gathered from part-timers as well as from full-time faculty and administrators with whom they interact. Sixty-one percent of all part-timers in Canada at 20 different universities were represented in Rajagopal's sample population.

While part-timers were selected randomly (four out of every five from each university), universities were chosen based on characteristics such as location, size, research orientation and disciplinary areas. Seven types of administrators were surveyed at each institution, as well as, on average, one out of every five full-timers at each. Response rates ranged from 41 to 48 per cent.

An appendix outlining the survey's main objectives and methodologies is included at the end of the book, a welcome addition for those whose job it is to educate the critical disbeliever.

As someone who has tried with little success to uncover information about sessionals at my own university, I fully appreciate that the task Rajagopal took on was monumental, and that what she has accomplished is astounding. Most universities keep little or no records of their contract academics, even though some of these people have been employed year after year for decades. And the part-timers themselves are almost impossible to locate since they are often working without the benefit of offices, mailing addresses or phone numbers, or are travelling from campus to campus in order to make ends meet. Accordingly, Rajagopal's work represents an important compilation of information about this largely invisible part of the Canadian academic workforce.

One of the most interesting concepts that emerges from Hidden Academics is the distinction between two types of part-timers: classics and contemporaries. Classics are those who teach part-time in academia but hold a full-time job elsewhere, perhaps a lawyer who comes in to give the occasional class in her or his area of specialty. Contemporaries are those who teach part-time in academia, but who do not have a full-time job elsewhere because they are keen on pursuing an academic career.

In Canada, contemporaries account for more than 65 per cent of all part-timers. More than 60 per cent of the contemporaries surveyed wanted a full-time academic job, but 38 per cent of those felt they had no chance of obtaining one in the next three years. Seventy-seven per cent also conduct research, even though they have little or no access to the resources needed to do so.

These 'real' part-timers first appeared in the 1970s when university budgets began decreasing as enrolments grew. Their numbers increased in the '80s and '90s as the financial situation worsened but student numbers continued to climb. Universities are now both financially and logistically reliant upon these contemporary part-timers, particularly for the delivery of large, lower-level undergraduate courses.

The history of these important changes, as well as current and future trends in Canada's contract academic workforce, are clearly presented in this book. With Rajagopal's easy-to-reference format, multitude of graphs, charts and tables, and comprehensive footnotes and reference list, this compendium is a must for faculty associations and others representing contract academics in their search for recognition and respect.

The author's pleasant and passionate writing style makes this a good read for those wanting to educate themselves further about an issue that has far-reaching effects on all aspects of academia. Let's hope that the arguments and supporting data presented in Hidden Academics will finally encourage universities to take responsibility for these qualified and skilled professionals, facilitating their full integration into academic life.

Karen M. Needham is chair of the University of British Columbia Faculty Association Sessional Faculty Committee and a member of CAUT's Contract Academic Staff Committee.