Kent State University and the AAUP-KSU collective bargaining negotiating teams met March 11, 2019 in a mediated session with federal mediator Brittney Howard. This update is intended to keep you informed about current negotiations and provide factual information to help you make sense of the rhetoric that is an unfortunate part of the bargaining process.
The university is committed to the most generous salary and benefits package we can afford while remaining fiscally responsible in a significantly different environment than existed at the time of the previous contract.
When compared to other universities’ contract negotiations with faculty, Kent State’s proposal offers competitive increases in salaries and benefits for KSU faculty, particularly considering the current environment of tuition restraint, escalating healthcare costs, declining enrollment and downward trends in the state’s college-age demographics.
In short, our financial world has changed since our previous KSU-AAUP contract, and the university must balance our commitment to offer the most competitive wages and benefits possible with our commitment to the long-term financial viability of the university.
The university continues to actively negotiate in good faith and work diligently toward a reasonable and fair agreement for our valued faculty. We are hopeful our next mediation session on March 26 will bring meaningful progress toward our shared goals.
We will provide additional updates as negotiations continue.