The state Legislature's Joint Committee on Employment Relations voted Tuesday to give UW System faculty and academic staff a raise of 5 percent over the next two years, though some call the increases disappointing.
The raises will come in intervals from now until April 2009.
President of The Association of University of Wisconsin Professionals Mark Evenson called the raises feeble"" and referred to them instead as pay cuts.
""The pay increases are not likely to keep up with inflation and so are in fact pay reductions in real dollar terms,"" Evenson said.
Faculty and academic staff will be given a 2 percent increase now, another 2 percent next July and a final 1 percent increase the following April.
UW System spokesperson David Giroux said because UW colleges currently offer less than competing universities, the smaller increases mean the UW System is only going to fall further behind.
""The situation we find ourselves in is a bit of a vicious cycle,"" Giroux said. ""When the wages are not competitive and word gets out people are leaving '¦ that leaves us with academic departments that get devastated by competitive offers.""
UW-Madison political science professor Charles Franklin said the faculty losses suffered by the political science department last year might have something to do with lack of sufficient pay raises.
""Money is not the sole motive for departures,"" Franklin said. ""But where are the opportunities? The price of staying here is you'll fall further and further behind your peers.""
Giroux said without maintaining competitive salaries, it is harder to attract and keep faculty and staff. This makes it harder to retain and draw in the students, according to Giroux.
""I think the long-term consequence is the very real risk the university will lose the reputation it's earned,"" Giroux said. ""Right now, the only thing keeping us competitive is our reputation.
