By Joe Adams
The University of Central Florida and the United Faculty of Florida have reached a two-year agreement to provide faculty with a one-time spring payment and salary increases this fall.
The arrangement follows more than a year of negotiations and covers the fiscal years of 2018-19 and 2019-20. Traditionally, pay agreements between the university and the union are reopened every year for negotiation. The parties agreed to a two-year memorandum of understanding to better address faculty pay raises for this fiscal year that had been pending based on the outcome of negotiations.
Under the new agreement, which is subject to the approval of the UCF Board of Trustees, eligible UCF faculty members will receive a one-time payment of $2,250 on May 10. Starting with the Aug. 23 pay period, eligible faculty members will receive a 2 percent salary increase.
For the 2019-20 year, the agreement provides eligible salary members with an additional pay increase of 1.25 percent starting with the Sept. 20 pay period. Depending on whether the university receives additional recurring funding, eligible faculty members could receive another 1.25 percent salary increase in the same pay period, based on the agreement.
“Interim President Thad Seymour and I applaud the union for working with us to find the common ground for rewarding our hard-working faculty, which are the foundation of our academic enterprise,” said Dr. Elizabeth A. Dooley, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “Working together, I know the union and UCF will continue to find ways to support our faculty and to advance excellence in teaching and learning.”
Dooley commended members of both negotiating teams. UCF’s bargaining team members are chief negotiator Michael Mattimore, Sherry Andrews, Dr. Charles Reilly, Dr. Ross Wolf and Charlie Piper. The UFF’s bargaining team is led by chief negotiator Dr. Jennifer Sandoval with assistance from Dr. Yovanna Pineda, John Raible, Dr. John Fauth, Dr. Mason Cash and Scott Launier.
“It has been my privilege to work with this incredible group of volunteers tirelessly representing the interests of faculty during our negotiations,” said Sandoval, associate professor and program coordinator for Communication and Conflict with the Nicholson School of Communication and Media. “We thank the BOT representatives for their continued engagement in good faith bargaining this year during a time of constant change and uncertainty. Collaboration on the MOU regarding salary is a positive step forward in our ongoing work on the new contract.
“We also thank the UCF administration, specifically Provost Dooley, for making faculty compensation a priority.”
Negotiations continue between the university and the union on the broader collective bargaining agreement for 2018-21. The United Faculty of Florida bargaining team represents more than 1,670 employees at UCF.
