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Historic Victory in Duane Storti's Lawsuit
In 2003, Associate Professor Duane Storti (Mechanical Engineering) sued the University
charging that President McCormick had violated the Faculty Code when he refused
to allocate funds for the 2% annual merit salary increase that is guaranteed as
part of University salary policy. On March 17, 2006 the University of Washington
Regents agreed to settle the case. The settlement restores the lost 2% raise and
awards $17.45 million in back pay to more than 3,000 faculty members. Most
importantly, the settlement and the Oct 25, 2005 summary judgment by Superior
Court Judge Mary Yu establish that the Faculty Code (University
Handbook) is an enforceable contract and cannot be ignored just because the administration finds
it to be inconvenient. This is an historic victory that will shape governance at
the University of Washington and potentially other schools for decades to come.
Below is more information about the settlement and about Duane
Storti's three-year long effort on behalf of UW faculty and the Faculty Code.
Here is the settlement filed in court March 17, 2006:
http://www.bs-s.com/uwfaculty.html
A summary of what if means:
UW Faculty News- 2% Lawsuit
Settlement: What does it mean? (March 17, 2006)
News coverage in local papers:
UW to give $17.45 million in back pay (Seattle
PI, 3-17-06)
UW to pay faculty $17.5 million in back pay to settle lawsuit
(Tacoma Herald, 3-17-06)
Superior Court Justice Mary Yu's October 25, 2005 ruling:
UW
Faculty News- Big Victory in Duane Storti 2% case (Oct 25, 2005)
Duane Storti initially sought redress using University
adjudication procedures, but President Huntsman insisted that adjudication
panels had no authority to hear the complaint. So Storti found an attorney and
took it to court. Here is the original adjudication attempt:
Adjudicating the 2% issue Duane Storti
files grievance (Dec. 5, 2002)
Adjudication Petition
Notice of Request for Adjudication
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