UC implements unconditional salary increase
BY JANE NHO
The UC Office of the President announced a 3 percent universitywide increase in salary for nonrepresented academic personnel, as well as a 2 percent increase for faculty on Thursday, effective July 1.
The increase will affect nonrepresented staff members at the university — staff unaffiliated with unions — which include librarians, human resources and public affairs staff, among others. Despite the planned increase, staff members at UC Berkeley have only been authorized a 1 percent increase in salary to account for a 2 percent increase authorized in March as a market adjustment. The universitywide increase will also exempt senior UC management.
A similar universitywide salary increase of 3 percent was authorized in October 2011, but it was merit-based and given only to staff who received satisfactory performance reviews and had salaries of less than $200,000. According to UC spokesperson Brooke Converse, there has not been an unconditional universitywide salary increase in five years.
“We want to make sure that all our faculty and staff is valued,” Converse said. “The president (Mark Yudof) believes the staff deserves it.”
Converse said UC President Mark Yudof wanted to implement the increase now because staff pension contributions could go up to as much as 6.5 percent on July 1. Providing the salary increase could offset some of the costs.
Robert Powell, chair of the UC Academic Senate, said that many of the faculty members he has spoken to about this salary increase are in favor of it.
However, unlike the other UC schools, UC Berkeley will not receive the full 3 percent increase due to a 2 percent salary increase for nonrepresented staff in March.
In an email in March, then-UC Berkeley chancellor Robert Birgeneau said the 2 percent increase at UC Berkeley was an effort to align the compensation of the school’s nonrepresented staff with the marketplace and retain quality personnel.
“In fact, at present our non-represented staff is, on average, 11 percent behind the market as of 2012, and we are experiencing challenges in recruiting Bay Area talent to important positions here on our campus,” Birgeneau said in the email. “My primary goals in this effort are to recognize our staff, strengthen our workforce, and ensure the future of UC Berkeley.”
The funds for the universitywide salary increase will come from each campus’s 2013-14 budget.
The estimated cost of the systemwide program for core funded programs is approximately $54 million, according to Converse.
Contact Jane Nho at [email protected]
Clarification(s):
A previous version of this article may have implied that the UC would be receiving additional funds for the salary increases. In fact, no additional allocations will be made to fund these increases. The funds will come from each campus’s 2013-14 budget.
Correction(s):
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that a 3 percent increase in salary was approved for faculty and nonrepresented academic personnel. In fact, the salary increase is 3 percent for nonrepresented academic personnel and 2 percent for faculty.
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that professors are among staff unaffiliated with unions. In fact, professors are not staff. Staff unaffiliated with unions include librarians, human resources and public affairs staff, among others.
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that staff pension contributions will go up 6.5 percent on July 1. In fact, they could go up to as much as 6.5 percent.
[Source]: The Daily Californian
