After more than a year of negotiations in good faith, we are on the doorstep of a historic labor agreement with our faculty. The University’s bargaining committee met with the faculty union for in-person negotiations on April 10th and 11th as we continue to work toward agreement on Pitt’s first faculty contract.
On April 11th, the University made a counterproposal to the union which provides:
• Full-time bargaining unit faculty with a flat dollar amount increase of $3,900 (which is equal to 4%) to their base compensation retroactive to July 1, 2023 and a flat dollar amount increase of $3,140 (which is equal to 3%) effective July 1, 2024.
• Full-time bargaining unit faculty effective July 1, 2025, a 2.5% annual maintenance increase. If the annual maintenance increase approved for full-time non-bargaining unit employees is higher than the percentage provided in the faculty collective bargaining agreement, the University would increase the 2.5% and match whatever non-bargaining unit employees receive.
• A minimum base salary of $60,000 for most full-time faculty, and a minimum base compensation for part-time faculty, including a per-credit rate of $2,500 for bargaining unit faculty at the Pittsburgh campus.
• A one-time ratification bonus of $5,000 to full-time bargaining unit faculty, paid over two years, and $500 to part-time bargaining unit faculty.
The University’s compensation proposal is responsive to the financial concerns raised by the Union and represents a significant financial concession by the University, in recognition of the value and importance of our Pitt faculty. However, as we have seen over the last several years, the University’s revenue streams can be uncertain. To account for the rare instances when there is a significant decrease in revenue or enrollment, the University proposed a clause allowing the University to delay or not implement the annual maintenance increases in lieu of more severe measures, including faculty layoffs or the closure of academic programs.
The union responded with a counterproposal that accepted all of the proposed increases to faculty compensation but rejected the University’s clause that would help prevent layoffs in the event of a significant decrease in revenue or enrollment.
The University and the union are next scheduled to meet on April 24, 2024.
The counter proposals presented by the University at the April 10th and 11th sessions can be accessed here.