Heading into the new academic year, we want to update you on progress
towards our first faculty contract.
The bargaining team for the United Faculty of Western Washington worked
throughout the summer and held several negotiation sessions with the bargaining
team for the university administration.
These meetings have been very productive so far and we have scheduled
several additional sessions for fall with the first to be held on the first two
days of classes. During these
sessions we will continue to push for a first contract that will provide
faculty with the tools we need to carry out the university’s educational
mission of engaged excellence.
As you know, the state legislature appropriated funds for a 3.2%
increase in faculty salaries this year.
This is a start, but it does not go nearly far enough toward fulfilling
Western’s commitment to the competitive salaries we need to recruit and retain
the best faculty. In fact, the
3.2% increase alone would leave us falling even further behind in our efforts
to reach President Morse’s and the Board of Trustees’ goal of the 75th
percentile for salaries among our peer institutions.
This was a very good budget year for Western. After all of the decision packages and other legislatively
mandated items have been funded, Western has at least 9.7 million dollars in
discretionary revenue that can be spent on any initiative, including faculty
salaries. We are working hard with
our administrative colleagues at the bargaining table to continue Western’s
recent tradition of enhancing the legislative salary appropriation with local
funds. Any investment in Western’s
future must begin with an investment in the faculty who make Western the
outstanding institution that it is.
Our goal is to complete negotiations on a comprehensive contract as soon
as possible so that the funds appropriated by the legislature and any
additional salary increases can be distributed. In the meantime, please note that the funds appropriated by
the state are in Western’s budget, earmarked for faculty salaries. Even if negotiations on the first
contract are not complete before the first faculty paycheck on October 10, the
UFWW will ensure that all of the money that the legislature has appropriated
for faculty salaries will still reach the faculty.