The latest round of negotiations between the State System of Higher Education and the union representing its approximately 5,500 faculty concluded without agreement on a new contract.

The two sides agreed to meet again on August 25 and also scheduled several sessions in September in an effort to achieve a settlement. The latest contract between the State System and the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) expired June 30.

The State System has proposed salary increases for all faculty in each of the next three years. All faculty members would receive general pay increases of 2 percent each in 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 and 2.5 percent in 2001-2002. In addition, a majority of the faculty also would receive annual service increments of 2.5 percent in each of the three years. Those not eligible for the service increments would receive additional cash payments of 2.5 percent in each of the second and thirds years of the contract

APSCUF is seeking a four-year contract, with annual pay increases of 4 percent in the first year, 4.25 percent in each of the second and third years and 5 percent in the fourth year. The faculty union also is seeking to retain the annual service increments at 5 percent for seven years.

The State System faculty is among the highest paid in the nation, ranking in the 93^rd percentile among those at comparable public institutions. They rank in the 70^th percentile in the northeast, where salaries tend to be higher than in the rest of the country.

The average nine-month salary for a full-time faculty member during the 1998-99 academic year was $59,428. The average salary for an instructor – the lowest of four faculty ranks – was $34,085, while the average nine-month salary for a full professor – the highest rank – was $76,255.

The faculty also receive a fully paid package of medical and other benefits that does not require individual contributions and may choose from three separate retirement plans.

Personnel costs will account for 80 percent of the State System’s overall $917 million 1999-2000 budget. The cost of faculty salaries and benefits alone require about 60 percent of that total.

The System’s 1999-2000 budget, which already has been approved by the Board of Governors and includes a $150 tuition increase for students, represents an increase of only 3.2 percent over the 1998-99 spending total, requiring the universities to keep a tight rein on spending.

In addition to expected higher personnel costs, the State System also is committed to investing in technology for the campuses and in the development of new courses and programs in order to continue to fulfill the high-quality portion of its mission and to help meet the Commonwealth’s changing workforce needs.

The State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth. Its 14 universities offer more than 250 degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Nearly 350,000 System alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. The System also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Kittanning, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and the University Center for Southwest Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh. The regional centers are part of the Education Resources Group, which is responsible for coordinating statewide programming.