Eastern’s faculty earns much less than their peers at other state universities in Illinois, not to mention peers across the United States, something the faculty’s union hopes to correct.

Contract negotiation have begun again for Eastern’s faculty. The University Professionals of Illinois local 4100, Eastern’s faculty union, met with Eastern administrators late Tuesday afternoon to discuss better compensation for Eastern instructors, along with several other issues the university would not disclose.

Eastern officials were unavailable for comment after the meeting.

“There are 25 to 30 issues, which money may be a part of it. I don’t think we could disclose those issues until we make an agreement on all those issues,” said Bob Wayland, director of employee and labor relations and the administration’s chief negotiations officer

The two parties have made tentative agreements on some issues, bringing a contract agreement closer, Wayland said, but he would not say what agreements had been reached.

“Both parties, I think, are pleased,” he said.

UPI local President David Radavich, English professor, said faculty compensation is always one of the issues during contract negotiations.

He added the school has made progress in the area but still needs to improve, which may take several years and several negotiations, taking one small step at a time.

According to Charles Delman, mathematics professor and the union’s vice president, Eastern has the lowest paid tenured faculty in the state and is also behind in the nation compared to schools of similar quality, citing Eastern’s rank as one of the top schools in the nation according to US News and World Report.

At Eastern, the average annual salary for a professor on tenure, which provides better job security, higher pay and favorable benefits, is $59,100, Delman said.

The University of Illinois, admittedly much larger and paying the highest salaries to professors in Illinois, pays tenured professor an average salary of $80,900.

Western Illinois University, which is second in the line of lowest paying universities, pays all ranks of instructors $2,000 more per year than Eastern, Delman said.

As far as total compensation including benefits, Eastern professors, including non-tenured professors, make $64,700 on average per year: the lowest in the state and significantly lower than similar universities in the nation.

Delman cited a similar-sized comprehensive university in Minnesota with a master’s degree program, the University of Minnesota at Duluth, which was also rated high in quality by US News and World Report, compensates professors $81,000 on average per year, including benefits.