UT Pay Raise: One Down, One to Go!

In an email sent to all UT system employees this afternoon UT President DiPietro made the pay raise announcement official, pending Board of Trustee approval, and we won what we've been fighting for: flat dollar minimums ($1,000 for most employees, as much as $2,600 for the lowest paid). This is wonderful news, and with the increase in base pay to $8.50 it is also a major milestone in the campaign for Living Wages on campuses across the state. We hope that TBR Chancellor John Morgan and other members of TBR leadership will deciede to take a similar approach with pay raises on their campuses.

We need to remember some context. This time last year Govenor Bredesen had just finished threatening a 5% pay cut as leverage in budget debates. University officials and state politicians alike were making statements that it would likely be years before another pay raise. This is our victory. This news comes after months of hard work where literally thousands of public higher education employees were involved. We refused to go another year without a cost of living increase. We sent emails and made phone calls, we attended union meetings, planned informational pickets, press conferences and rallies. Over 100 higher ed employees even spent our vacation time traveling to Nashville to lobby for a real, flat dollar cost of living increase. 

And this fight is not over yet. We await news from TBR concerning their pay raise plans. Recent statements from campus administrators have mentioned a 3% pay increase, and this positive motion is the result of pressure we have kept on TBR officials to stand with hardworking staff and faculty. But we need an equal dollar raise from TBR as well. The last 4 pay increases for public higher education employees have included a flat dollar compontent at UT, but sadly TBR did not follow suit. We hope Chancellor Morgan will show leadership and get on board with these efforts this year and in the years to come.

A final point, in his message President DiPietro made a special point to give credit to members of the UT Employee Relations Advisory Board for pushing for a minimum dollar increase. Leading our union is oftentimes tireless, thankless work - but it feels important to take a moment and say "thank you" to UCW-CWA President Tom Anderson. Tom, who works in the UT Knoxville Physical Plant, sits on the ERAB. He has made sure that discussion of flat dollar pay raises have been on every ERAB meeting agenda this year. 

Good work; let's get back to it. We've got a flat dollar pay raise still to win at TBR.

From: President Joseph A DiPietro

Sent: Wednesday June 15 2011 3:19 PM
To: President Joseph A DiPietro
Subject: Fiscal Year 2012 Pay Increases

June 15, 2011

To: UT System-wide Faculty and Staff
From: President Joe DiPietro
Re: Fiscal Year 2012 Pay Increases

As you know, the State of Tennessee has authorized a 1.6 percent pay increase for
state employees. The University of Tennessee will fund the additional amount
necessary for a total across-the-board raise of 2 percent for all eligible staff and
faculty statewide with satisfactory job performance evaluations. This increase takes
effect for most employees on July 1, 2011.

The following guidelines govern plans to implement across-the-board pay increases:

* Full-time and part-time regular employees paid less than $8.50 an hour before July
1, 2011, receive an automatic increase to $8.50 an hour. Eligible members of that
group also will receive a 2 percent across-the-board increase or $500, whichever is
greater.

* Eligible, full-time and part-time regular employees currently paid $8.50 an hour
or more will receive a 2 percent across-the-board increase or $1,000, whichever is
greater.

The decision to include a flat minimum pay increase as described above is based on
input from your Employee Relations Advisory Board (ERAB), the University's official
employee representative group. It also reflects a commitment from the Compensation
Advisory Board to help our lowest-paid employees.

In addition to the across-the-board provisions, leadership at each campus, institute
and for the System are developing plans for additional merit- and equity-based
increases. After four years without state appropriations for a pay raise for our
employees, a pay increase is the University's first priority this year despite
limited budget resources and the need for cuts in other areas.

Final details of any additional increases - the amount and who receives them - will
be determined and communicated by the campuses and institutes. Specific amounts will
vary, and it is up to each unit to find funding for its proposed plan.

The Board of Trustees must approve proposed pay increases as part of its vote on the
entire University budget. Pending budget approval by the Board at its meeting on
June 23, increases take effect July 1, 2011, for all staff and for faculty with
12-month appointments. Increases for faculty with nine-month appointments take
effect Aug. 1, 2011.

Thank you for all your good work for the University of Tennessee.