New salary scale to benefit 625

A group of more than 625 employees will benefit from a higher salary scale and leave-accrual plan as a result of a vote April 28. The new arrangement was effective May 1.

The overwhelming vote was coupled with a successful joint effort in the most recent legislative session to amend state law, permitting the UW to apply the same exemption and professional staff criteria to Classified Staff Association bargaining units as have applied to non-CSA covered positions.

Employees moving from state civil service to CSA contract coverage will receive a salary increase of about 2 percent and between one and five increased vacation days (depending on length of service). They also will be eligible for the Career Enhancement Program available to CSA-covered employees. Under this program, employees are eligible for additional step increases based upon extraordinary performance.

“These events end years of disagreement over the application of the exemption criteria to CSA bargaining unit members, an issue the University desired to resolve,” says Danny Kraus, labor relations associate director. “This also allows all University employees represented by CSA to be covered by one set of contracts under one system, an issue CSA desired to resolve.”

The group receiving enhanced benefits covers a wide range of administrative, technical and administrative support job classes. The classifications involved can be found at: http://www.washington.edu/admin/laborrel/.

The UW and CSA recently have created a joint labor-management committee, which, according to Kraus, will consider “more global issues” in developing better conditions in the workplace. “This is a direct outgrowth of the last round of successful negotiations,” Kraus says. ¶