Academy for Academic Personnel Administration

Fall 2003

Round Table Report

 

1.  Institution Information

 

Name of Institution/System: Kent State University

 

Name of Individual Responding: Gayle L. Ormiston

 

Title of Individual Responding: Associate Provost, Faculty Affairs and Curriculum

 

2a. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition

 

The tenure-track faculty unit has 837 members approximately as of September 22, 2003 [8 campuses of Kent State University].

 

Bargaining Agent: AAUP Kent State Chapter

 

Date of First Contract:  September 1978 for the tenure-track unit.

 

Number of Succeeding Contracts:  8 [plus 5 “modifications & extensions” of the original Agreement in the 1979-84 period] for the tenure-track unit.

 

2b. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition

 

The second unit is the full-time non-tenure track unit with 229 members approximately (formerly known as "term" or "temporary" faculty) across the 8 campuses of Kent State University.

 

Bargaining Agent: AAUP Kent State Chapter--but separate and distinct from the tenure-track unit.

 

Date of First Contract:  August 1996

 

Number of Succeeding Contacts:  2

 

2c. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition

 

     

Bargaining Agent:       

 

Date of First Contract:       

 

Number of Succeeding Contracts:       

 

 

 

 

 

2d. Description of Faculty Bargaining Unit(s) – Size and Composition

Bargaining Agent:       

 

Date of First Contract:       

 

Number of Succeeding Contracts:       

 

 

3. Activity Report (e.g., status of current agreement or negotiations, details of last contract settlement, etc.): 

 

3 (a) Entering third year of three-year (September 16, 2001 – September 16, 2004) Agreement.  Salary increase provisions for continuing members of bargaining unit:

AY 2001-02:     1% across-the-board, effective January 2002.  

AY 2002-03:04% [2% effective August 2002 plus 2% effective January 2003]  across the board.
AY 2003-04: 5% [3% across the board + 2% ‘merit’ pool].

 

3 (b) NTT AGREEMENT (NTT Faculty Unit of AAUP-KSU): Entering first year of third three-year Agreement (August 19, 2002 - August 19, 2005).  Salary increase provisions for continuing members of bargaining unit:

            AY 2002-03:     2% across-the-board as percentage of previous salary.
            AY 2003-04:     4% [2% effective August 2003 plus 2% effective January 2004] -
                            distributed among continuing members of bargaining unit on a per capita basis.
            AY 2004-05:     4%  across-the-board as percentage of previous salary.

50 competitive ‘performance-based bonuses’ of $3,500 @ will continue to be made available in each of the three years. [These bonuses do not become part of continuing base annual contract salaries.]

 

4. Special or noteworthy happenings (e.g., relevant arbitration or court decisions, organizing campaigns, labor agency decisions, etc.)

 

4a.        TENURE-TRACK AGREEMENT:  2001 Negotiations were conducted on ‘modified traditional bargaining’ model, implementing some aspects of interest-based bargaining with assistance of FMCS facilitator; produced agreement on eve of expiration of previous CBA.  Two on-going [for Life of Agreement] joint University/AAUP committees created by Agreement:

(1)    Joint AAUP/University Study Committee [a labor-management committee on model favored by FMCS] ;

(2)    Quality of Faculty Work/Life Committee – charged with “review and study of ways, exclusive of salary, in which the University could enhance the quality of the work/life of faculty members, especially women faculty members.”

4b.        NTT AGREEMENT:  The NTT CBU is the fastest-growing component of University’s faculty cadre: from 114 at time of original Agreement in 1996, to ca. 160 members by second Agreement in 1999, to 242 in Spring 2003.  [Tenure-track faculty numbers have been stable, following slight dip, now restored, as result of 1991-96 ERIPs.  Largest headcount (and FTE) loss has been among part-time faculty.]

            Although employed on one-year contracts (with possibility, at University’s sole discretion, of a three-year term of annually renewable appointments following three years of service and a positive ‘full performance review’), stability of the CBU has been consistent at the 85% retention/continuation level from year to year.

5.  Special happenings related to fiscal issues (e.g., salary reductions, health and dental insurance costs, reductions in force, early retirement programs, program consolidation or elimination, etc.):

 

TENURE-TRACK AGREEMENT provides for a limited [5% of STRS membership; buy out maximum of three (3) years service credit] ERIP through State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio to be available for a one-year period, June 1 2003 – June 1, 2004.  [More a response to a union issue in Negotiations than a University response to fiscal issues, however.]  The full effect of this “buy out” program are not known at this time since the last retirement date is June 1, 2004.

Administrative restructuring within academic affairs (potentially extensive) under active review, with some significant changes in planning and transition stage now.  “Cost neutral” increases for a 2-3 year period in administrative expense is a [hopeful] “first principle”.  The most significant proposals to come forward at this time are the changing of status of the School of Architecture and Environmental Design to the status of an independent College, and the administrative  restructuring of  Regional Campuses office and the College of Continuing Studies under a new administrative office—the Office of Regional Development and Outreach.

In the September/October 2002, the University changed health-care providers but maintained current coverage and plans.  This action was permitted by the current tenure-track agreement, so long as notification and an “appropriate” time to meet and confer with the leadership of the tenure-track bargaining unit occurred before hand.  There was a change in provider, in supplementary providers for those faculty electing to staff within their existing provider network which would then overlap with the new provider’s network.  This change was a carry over issue from negotiations in 2001; both parties agreed that the University would reserve the right to make such a change in light changing relationship with the current health-care provider.

In response to State of Ohio mandated budget cuts (2 in AY 01-02; 1 in AY 02-03), the university implemented a “strategic positioning” plan in the Spring 03.  The result of the actions undertaken through this budgetary reduction process was the elimination, transfer, or layoff of  approximately 40 staff and administrative contract or professional staff positions.