Contract negotiations continue. The Bargaining Team is working collaboratively and making progress on some complex and important issues, but needs to continue in the Fall. In the meantime, some elements need to be in place for the fiscal year starting July 1st, so Memoranda of Understanding to the existing CBA were signed in a Labor Management session on June 10, 2016.
These will be incorporated into the next Contract in some form. We're concerned about the implementation of the complex Faculty Director and Department Chair proposal and need to see how that works out. But without the MOU, we would be leaving money on the table.
Last year the Legislature promised a 3% Cost of Living (COLA) increase, but only funded part of that. LWTech fully funded that out of scarce local resources, leaving us in a deficit (for that and other reasons, such as enrollment). We agreed at that time to pass the 3% directly to the payscale, since it had been so long in coming and barely adequate. The Legislature did NOT fund Faculty step movement (Increments).
This year the promised 1.8% increase was again underfunded and there was no Legislative funds for Increments. Turnover savings has been non-existent for two years, due to the high cost to hire new replacement Faculty. And our average salary remains in the bottom quarter of the state, despite working in King County.
The Team made the difficult decision to address the structure of our uneven, 18-step payscale and address other inequities for the future, while we have some negotiating rights to the scarce local funds and the 1.8% commitment. The Full Time steps were reduced to 5, raising the floor to the KingCo median wage, and giving many Faculty the equivalent of at least one increment. Unfortunately, there were not funds to raise the top levels (old 17 and 18) even a full percent. The Adjunct salary scale was raised 1.8%, with consolidations there to be made when funds become available.
We have tried to be strategic in combining the new step changes, Faculty titles, opportunities for release and stipends, and easing the Increment path for both Full and Part-Time Faculty; this will bring pressure on the Legislature, the state system and administration to continue pursuing creative ways to address our compensation situation.
Please use off-campus email resources to discuss these matters. I will forward questions and comments to the Team if you send them to lwft.president@gmail.com
Attached:
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_d_-_contract_extension_6.10.16_0.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_e_-_salary_schedule_6.10.16_0.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_e_step_scale_appendices_0.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_f_-_faculty_nomenclature_0.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_g_-_department_chairs.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_h_-_personal_leave.pdf
http://lwtcft.wa.aft.org/files/mou_i_-_alternative_compensation.pdf