A wave of lawsuits from California adjunct faculty alleges colleges are failing to compensate part-time instructors for work performed outside classroom hours, including preparation, travel, grading, and ongoing student communication. Plaintiffs filed at least five actions against the California Community Colleges Board of Governors and multiple districts, following an $18 million settlement with the Long Beach Community College District. The claims point to systemic pay inequities in a workforce where more than two-thirds of academic employees are temporary or part-time. In some districts, reported hourly wages for part-time faculty are far below full-professor pay for comparable course loads, and plaintiffs argue health care and office-hour compensation are also missing. The legal pressure escalates the broader adjunct organizing and wage-setting efforts across U.S. community colleges, as parties argue over whether non-classroom labor is being treated as uncompensated obligations.