IU support staff to receive 2.5% pay increase

Agreements approved by both of IU's unions will give support and service employees at least a 2.5 percent pay increase beginning July 1.\nWorkers who make less than $25,000 a year will get an additional $625, which will be distributed as a percentage in each paycheck throughout the year, said IU's union members.\nThe two employee unions at IU, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 832 and the Communications Workers of America Local 4730, approved two-year agreements on employment policies. The wage agreements are for one year. Of the members who voted, an overwhelming majority voted yes. Of the AFSME members who voted, 85 percent voted for the agreement to be approved.\nCWA board member Peter Kaczmarczyk said the 2.5 percent raise is comparable to the increase in the cost of living and will keep salaries even with inflation. He said the increase is similar to raises of the last several years.\nIU President Adam Herbert proposed giving the higher pay increase to the estimated 1,100 Bloomington employees who make less than $25,000 a year.\n"It shows a great deal of compassion on the part of the administration to recognize the significant number of employees making under $25,000 a year at IU," said Randy Pardue, president of the local AFSCME.\nMichael Crowe, vice president of CAO, helped in negotiations and said the important thing is that Herbert recognized something needed to be done for the lower-level employee. \n"This was his best shot within available resources," Crowe said.\nThis year, CWA proposed a 10-step wage progression program that would provide uniform annual pay raises for experience to clerical and technical staff. The proposal will be considered for the 2005-2006 negotiations.\nIn this longevity-based plan, after 10 years an employee would be considered highly proficient and should be paid at or near the top of the pay scale. The cost of living raises would still be negotiated each year.\nSince about 70 percent of all support staff at IU are below the midpoint on their pay scale, part of the proposal is to infuse a large amount of money to bring people up to where they should be on their pay scale. This infusion would happen over a span of four years.\nFor example, if an employee who has been working for the University for 15 years was on step five of the plan, there would need to be a large raise over the span of a few years to bring that person up to step 10.\nKaczmarczyk said the plan would greatly simplify the need to negotiate wages. He said the University has recognized there is a problem and Herbert continues to be favorable of the plan.\nState law does not permit public employees to engage in collective bargaining. However, in 1967, the IU board of trustees approved "conditions for cooperation" under which employee unions and the University can negotiate.\nThe CWA represents about 1,750 support staff in Bloomington and the AFSCME represents about 1,100 trades, maintenance, custodial, food service and law enforcement workers at IU.\nCrowe said he felt negotiations went well, but he would like the University to look at the IU police force in an attempt to provide them with all the tools available so they can best serve the campus.\n-- Contact staff writer Karen Yancey at kaeyance@indiana.edu .