Cal State Faculty OKs 3-Year Pact, Ending Volatile Year of Talks

California State University faculty announced Thursday that they have overwhelmingly endorsed a new three-year union contract that would shift more money into merit raises but would give professors more control over who deserves such raises.

Members of the California Faculty Assn. voted by a margin of 80% to 20% for the contract, ending a tumultuous year of stalled negotiations, imposed working conditions, union picketing and threatened strikes.

Under the contract, the 22-campus system will issue an average 5.2% raise to the 19,657 professors, librarians, counselors and coaches represented by the union. Nearly 40% of the money for raises will be awarded to those considered meritorious.

Susan Meisenhelder, the union’s incoming president, said she hoped the contract would become “the basis for a new cooperative relationship between the faculty and the CSU administration.”

Chancellor Charles B. Reed said he was optimistic that the Cal State Board of Trustees will give final approval to the contract at a special meeting June 1.

Although the administration made significant concessions, he said, the agreement is “a step in the right direction toward rewarding our faculty in a way that recognizes their scholarship and commitment to students.”