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from
Faculty Issues and Concerns listserve
2% Lawsuit Settlement: What does it mean?
First of all, it means that UW faculty have won an historic victory thanks to
Duane Storti. AAUP was not in a position to pursue this matter in the courts.
Duane did it on his own. He first tried to use university adjudication
procedures, but the McCormick administration blocked that avenue, insisting that
adjudication panels could not hear the complaint. So Duane found an attorney,
filed suit in 2003, and now is on the verge of settling a case that has
significance far beyond the monetary issues.
Duane Storti's lawsuit has two dimensions, the most important involves the
status of the Faculty Code (University Handbook). Judge Yu's Oct 25 ruling and
Thursday's settlement represent a huge victory for the Faculty Code and are
likely to stand as a legal milestone in the UW system of governance. They
establish that the University Handbook is a contract and cannot be ignored or
bypassed as President McCormick did in 2002 when he decided to suspend the 2%
merit raise agreement.
Here is what I have been able to learn about the financial settlement. Nothing
is yet final. Friday the parties presented the proposed settlement to Judge Yu
who provisionally approved the arrangement unless significant objections are
raised. Next comes a public notice period during which interested parties are
notified about the agreement and have a chance to comment on it. The deadline
for that is May 2. The final fairness hearing is set for May 12.
Under the proposed settlement the Regents have agreed to restore the lost merit
raise. That will take effect probably in June. Everyone covered by the agreement
will see a 2% increase in their paychecks and that will be their new salary base
going forward. Any merit increases ordered for next academic year (2006-07) will
build on that new salary base. This will cost the university about $6.2 million
a year.
In addition the agreement calls for $17.45 million as back pay compensation. 30%
of that amount ($5.2 million) goes to the law firm of Bendich, Stobaugh and
Strong that handled the case. Roughly $12 million will be available to
distribute to faculty covered by the agreement.
Who is covered? Faculty members who were in positions customarily eligible for
merit increases as of spring 2002 and who remained on the payroll for academic
year 2002-03 are party to the settlement. Here is the list of titles included in
the class:
Assistant/Associate/Full Professor
Assistant/Associate/Full Professor Without Tenure
Acting Assistant Professor Pending Ph.D.
Assistant/Associate/Full Research Professor
Lecturer Full-Time
Senior/Principal Lecturer
Artist in Residence
Senior Artist in Residence
clinical professors holding multi-year promotional pathway
appointments
The back pay distribution will be calculated on a prorated basis according to
salary as of 2002-03. The lawsuit asked for the missing 2%, plus lost increments
in subsequent years, plus interest. Actual awards will be less than that. You
can get a rough idea of the average back pay award by dividing the $12 million
by 3,200, which is the estimate of the number of eligible faculty that was
mentioned in the proceedings.
The back pay compensation will come as a single payroll check in June or July.
The usual taxes and retirement investments will be deducted.
Jim Gregory
Chapter Secretary UW-AAUP
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American Association of University Professors - UW Chapter
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