Non-negotiated employees received a 1 percent salary increase this year, marking the second increase in two years.

This applies to all non-negotiated employees who have been employed at Eastern prior to March 1.

The increase was approved by the Board of Trustees during the Sept. 13 meeting and will be retroactive to the start of the university’s fiscal year, which began on July 1.

The increase and the retroactive wages will appear on the Oct. 31 paychecks, according to an email sent to all employees.

Paul McCann, the vice president of business affairs, said the increase affects anywhere between 260 and 270 non-negotiated employees, which includes administrative and professional employees (such as administrators and coaches) and some civil service employees.

Eastern’s President David Glassman said there are three groups that university employees are categorized under.

The first group are the employees in any of the dozen unions on campus such as Eastern’s chapter of University Professionals of Illinois. The university contracts with the unions and negotiate salary increases.

The second group consists of employees in trades, and every year the state provides the prevailing wage for these trades. Glassman said as a state university they are obligated to pay the trades people the state rate.

Everyone else who does not have union stewards or the state talking on their behalf is categorized in the third group.

The last time non-negotiated employees saw an increase was last year and before that McCann said it was six years since they saw an increase.

The increase will cost the university $250,000, which McCann said is covered in this year’s university budget and paid for through appropriated funds and some tuition income.

Most of the money comes from appropriated funds because Eastern received an increase in its state budget this year, but McCann said they did not get a lot of additional money from tuition because although there was an increase, most of it was flat.

McCann said this was the last group of employees that received a raise. Everyone else received a raise of 1 percent, except the faculty whom received a 1.5 percent raise across the board this year in addition to other items negotiated in their contract. He said this is the second year of increases for the faculty as well.

Glassman said the reason the university waited so long to announce this year’s increase was because they had to see what the budget was going to look like.

“We have to know exactly what our budget is so we have to wait till the tenth day so we know how many students are here, how much revenue we can expect and then I make a determination as to whether or not, within that budget, we have enough money for a raise for our non-negotiated employees,” Glassman said.

With the increase, Glassman said he is grateful for the progress the university is making and McCann said the increase is part of getting to a much healthier state for the university.

“I’m really pleased to be able to have the university in the position to which we can reward our faculty and staff and everybody else for the work that they do we want to reinvest in all of our employees,” Glassman said.

Analicia Haynes can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected]