Dear members of the Redbird community,
This communication is a follow-up to the message you received on Saturday, March 22. On Monday, March 24, United Faculty of ISU (UFISU), the Union representing Illinois State University’s approximately 650 non-administrative tenured and tenure-track faculty, and the University were involved in a mediation session from 9 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. At 4:45 p.m., the University learned the Union had filed a Notice of Intent to Strike with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board (IELRB). While this action means that the Union can opt to strike any time after a ten-day waiting period, no sooner than Friday, April 4, it does not mean that a strike will occur.
The University remains committed to bargaining in good faith and believes that the parties can reach a fair agreement without a strike. However, as noted in the Saturday, March 22, email to students, faculty and staff, academic contingency planning activities are underway to minimize disruption should a strike occur. The University will continue to post new updates to frequently asked questions at ufisunegotiations.illinoisstate.edu/faqs/. Below are updates about the negotiation process and the University’s plans to minimize disruption for the campus community.
Updates from the latest mediation session
On Monday, March 24, the University and Union met for their forty-third negotiation session – the eighth conducted with assistance from an independent federal mediator. During this session, the University presented a revised economic proposal that includes enhanced compensation for sabbatical leave and other improvements to the University’s previous economic proposal. Discussion and clarifying questions/responses continued around these and other unresolved topics.
The University’s goal is for tenure-track faculty, at every rank/title and across their career, to be compensated in a manner that is competitive with the average for our Midwest R2 peer institutions, while also ensuring the ability to provide excellent and affordable educational opportunities for all students. We know that it is a financial stretch for many Illinois State families and students to make their dream of a college education a reality, and we are keeping this critical factor top-of-mind as we are working through these negotiations.
Illinois State maintains that the Union’s Monday, March 24, salary demands, which include average salary increases of over 28% over the next 33 months and exceed $40 million in added cost to the University over the life of the contract, are unrealistic based on the University’s current financial position, enrollment projections, anticipated state funding, uncertainties regarding how developments in Washington will influence federal funding for higher education, and the volatility of the overall economic climate. It also far exceeds average pay for comparable positions at our peer Midwest R2 institutions.
I believe it is important to share how the University’s current offers compare to the Union’s demands. Key takeaways from the University’s economic proposal presented at the Monday, March 24, mediation session, include:
- Salary increases that outpace inflation and place us above Illinois State’s Midwest R2 peer institutions with average cumulative increases, over the next 33 months, for Assistant Professors of over 13%, for Associate Professors of over 18%, and for Professors, the rank most in need of adjustment, of over 19%. These increases include:
- Both annual across-the-board and merit adjustments
- For Professors, an opportunity for a merit-based salary increases every fifth year after being promoted
- An increase of $7,000 for promotion to Associate Professor and an increase of $10,000 for promotion to Professor
- Moving forward, an increase in the annual base salary of $6,000 when one receives the University Professor honorary title and $8,000 when one receives the honorary title of Distinguished Professor
- A $500,000 allocation in FY27 and FY28 for individual market rate adjustments for Associate Professors and Professors
- Minimum per-credit hour compensation for teaching overloads and during winter and summer terms.
- Although calculated as part of the salary increase above, I want to highlight that the University has reached agreement with the Union to establish, for the first time, and effective on the first day of the first full month after ratification of the new collective bargaining agreement, minimum entry-level annual base salaries to guide compensation for Assistant Professors and Professors moving forward. We are continuing to negotiate minimum entry-level base salaries for Associate Professors.
- This means that the salary of any faculty member whose base salary falls below this minimum will automatically be increased to the new base amount.
- Beginning in Academic Year 2026-2027, tenured faculty will be eligible for a full-year sabbatical to be paid at 66.7% of their annual base salary after six academic years of teaching— Illinois State will be the only Illinois public R2 university to offer this benefit at this level.
- In addition, the University has offered four weeks of paid parental leave.
When benchmarking with peer institutions, the University is relying on comparison data from a neutral third-party, focusing on other public R2 universities in the Midwest and only on compensation paid to tenure-track faculty teaching in the same disciplines as those offered by Illinois State who are on nine-month contracts. These data do not include salaries of professors in medical or law schools, and other highly paid professional programs that Illinois State does not offer, nor do they include the salaries of chairs and directors.
Additional details regarding the most recent offer by the University and an overview of how Illinois State identified peer institutions can be found on the negotiations status website.
Planning for continuity on campus
The Union’s Intent to Strike is a development the University has worked diligently to avoid. While a Notice of Intent to Strike means that the Union can opt to strike any time after a ten-day waiting period, no sooner than Friday, April 4, it does not mean that a strike will occur. Additional mediation sessions with the Union and an independent federal mediator are currently scheduled for March 28, April 2, and April 4, 2025.
If a strike occurs, our primary objective will be to continue normal operations to the extent possible, including making every effort to minimize the disruption of instruction while meeting course objectives and ensuring timely grading.
- University Community: The University community will continue to receive general updates as this situation unfolds.
- Students: Course-specific details will be shared with students either through their course Canvas sites or through their Illinois State University email. Students should regularly monitor those channels if a strike date is announced.
- Employees: Faculty, staff, and students in employee roles not represented by the UFISU are not legally permitted to strike and should continue to perform their job duties as usual, so that the University can continue to serve its students, faculty, staff, and visitors.
Next steps
Despite this turn of events, the University remains steadfast in its commitment to continued good-faith negotiations to reach a fair contract agreement that reflects the needs of all stakeholders and demonstrates the value we place on our faculty.
However, we are also committed to the principle that the University must remain fiscally prudent, resilient, and sustainable for the long term. The University will continue to share updates on the University’s website (https://ufisunegotiations.illinoisstate.edu/) and through direct email communication.
