Eastern’s faculty will have the chance to review a possible four-year contract, which could change how they are paid for summer classes, a pay raise and several other terms.

The contract was recently given to the faculty members of the University Professionals of Illinois Local 4100 to look over. The terms were negotiated between representatives of UPI and Eastern’s administration.

Grant Sterling, lead negotiator for UPI, said most of the feedback he has received from faculty members has been positive and most of the questions he has received has been regarded pay for summer classes.

Pay for summer courses

Through the first three years of the contract, faculty teaching summer courses will be paid 78 percent of their normal monthly salary. In the fourth year they will be paid 80 percent.

Sterling said in previous contracts the formula used to calculate pay for summer classes was very complicated and was based on several factors including if the course was online or an independent study.

He said the new system is much simpler and was designed to develop conformity between what faculty members were getting paid.

“There was an interest in both sides to come up with a simpler system,” Sterling said.

Amie Calvert, lead negotiator for Eastern’s administration, agreed with Sterling and said pay for summer courses in the tentative contract was set up to benefit both sides involved.

Sterling said the percentage that was chosen was picked to keep costs stable and so the costs to administration did not radically increase during the summer.

Priority for retiring faculty

As with the previous contract, faculty members on retirement “glide” will be given priority for teaching up to six courses per summer for the last two years before they retire.

With this contract faculty members teaching summer courses in this way will receive 100 percent of their normal monthly salary the first three years of their contract. They will receive 80 percent of their monthly pay during the fourth year, which matches the pay rate of other faculty members.

Sterling said this is done for faculty members planning to retire within the next few years.

He said first three years are set at 100 percent so that those members do not have to re-plan their retirement in case they might be expecting their full salary.

The fourth year is set at 80 percent to help phase in the new rates for summer course pay.

Pay increase subjected to change

Faculty members will receive a 1.5 percent pay raise each of the four years of the possible contract. However both faculty and administration can meet to renegotiate this percentage during the life of the contract if certain conditions are met.

One of the conditions is if the university’s financial situation increases greatly.

Calvert said it is still difficult to predict how likely it is that that may happen but that they of course hope for the best.

Sterling said this might occur from the university trying to increase its enrollment. He said tuition is Eastern’s greatest source of funds and increasing that is likely the best way to increasing the university’s financial situation.

“I that going to happen? I don’t know, not this fall,” Sterling said. “Perhaps in two years time.”

The pay raise can also be renegotiated if the university were to go into a state of financial emergency. Though both Sterling and Calvert said what this would mean exactly can vary, it would essentially be when the university lacks the funds required to pay its faculty what is promised in the contract.

Sterling said this is a possibility that has been left open in previous contracts in order to plan for future circumstances. He said these could include the state cutting more of the university’s budget or if the institution is forced by the state to take on pension costs.

Both Sterling and Calvert said the possibility of pension costs is difficult to plan for because no one is quite sure what legislature the state might pass regarding it, if any at all.

“It’s a huge unknown what kind of impact it could have on us,” Calvert said. “It could be millions but I couldn’t even begin to guess.”

Sterling agreed with Calvert and said it was a gigantic unknown.

He said taking on the entire pension cost would likely be around $22 million but it might be phased in over time, which would be easier to deal with. Sterling also said the state may not do anything at all about for a while.

“They tried to do it last year but they couldn’t agree with each other,” he said.

Renegotiations would occur before layoffs

Unlike the last contract, furloughs are not mentioned at all. But this does not mean they are out of the question.

Calvert said there are multiple options that might be pursued in a situation where layoffs are possible.

“In a financial emergency, both parties have time to meet and discuss what options we would implement,” she said.

The departmental application of criteria will be eligible for revision by each department under the potential contract.

If a department develops a new DAC faculty members can choose to be evaluated under it or the DAC before it.

Sterling said they would be allowed to do choose between the two until the next DAC revision and they are not able to choose from a DAC before the last one.

Increases compensate for inflation

To help compensate for inflation, Sterling said the money given for merit awards will increase. He said the awards have not increased in six years.

Sterling said there are a variety of awards for different amounts, different departments and under different circumstances. Because of this, he said its difficult to say who might get them or which ones will change the most.

“We have a whole slew of merit awards,” he said. “Everybody on campus is eligible in some way.”

Similarly, minima lanes and the overload rate will increase 1.5 percent each year of the contract. Sterling said this is again done to help compensate for inflation.

Calvert said it has been decades since negotiations for the next contract were completed before the current UPI contract ended.

“No one can remember a time when a contract has been finished before it expires. So that was a huge accomplishment,” she said. “This was collaborative effort by all the participants, the willingness of everyone involved to stay focused was appreciated.”

Sterling said there will be open meetings during the first weeks of classes for faculty to voice questions and concerns. From there he said the faculty will vote to possibly ratify it.

If the contract is ratified Calvert said it will be on the Board of Trustees’ agenda to possibly be approved during their first meeting Sept. 21.

Seth Schroeder can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].