LITTLE ROCK — University of Arkansas System President B. Alan Sugg on Tuesday directed all system campuses to withhold budgeted salary increases for professors and administrators at the request of Gov. Mike Beebe.
In a meeting earlier in the day, Beebe acknowledged that the University of Arkansas board of trustees has the authority to determine salaries for nonclassified staff members, but he “strongly recommended institutions of higher education hold off on salary increases at this time,” Sugg said in a news release.
“I regret that we are not able to award salary increases at this time, but I feel that we should honor the request of our governor,” Sugg wrote in a memorandum to UA chancellors and presidents.
Nonclassified staff members are not governed by the pay scale used for other state employees.
The directive came after the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville had already notified nearly 1,200 nonclassified employees of raises and programmed its payroll software to provide the increases July 1.
Fayetteville Chancellor G. David Gearhart said Monday that he would wait for official direction from Sugg before suspending raises, despite word that the state’s top economic official had told legislators that he would require that pay levels not increase over those in fiscal2010, which ends June 30.
Gearhart said he was “disappointed” after reading Sugg’s e-mail Tuesday.
“I think our faculty and staff deserve an increase,” he said. “I’m just hopeful that we don’t lose some good people in the meantime.”
As part of overall belt tightening, UA’s nonclassified employees did not receive raises in fiscal 2010.
Sugg directed chancellors to hold money budgeted for salary increases in reserve until a January review.
Don Pederson, vice chancellor for finance at the Fayetteville campus, said raises in salary and fringe benefits for nonclassified employees there made up $2.6 million of the fiscal 2011 budget.
Gearhart said that money will be held in an account, and raises could be given retroactively in January. .
“I can’t promise anything,” he said. “But we are very much hoping it’s a possibility.”
A 2009 report by the nonprofit Southern Regional Education Board ranked Arkansas’ average faculty salary at fouryear universities as the lowest of its 16-member states. Arkansas’ average was $60,500, compared with $73,500 nationwide and $71,300 for the group’s member states.
Richard Weiss, director of the state Department of Finance and Administration, caught some higher-education officials by surprise Thursday when he told a legislative committee aboutplans to limit pay raises at public institutions and to allow universities to give fiscal 2010 raises only to classified employees.
Classified employees at universities are in nonfaculty positions such as janitors, grounds workers and administrative assistants.
Arkansas colleges and universities made two unexpected midyear budget cuts in fiscal 2010.
On May 21, the UA board of trustees approved budget increases for campuses and the creation of small, undedicated reserve funds in case of less than-expected state revenue. Salaries are paid from the universities’ educational and general funds, made up of tuition, fees and state contributions.
The board of trustees oversees all the UA campuses in the state.
Beebe spokesman Matt DeCample said Tuesday that Beebe and Weiss acknowledged that they could not require universities to limit raises, but they encouraged them to do so.
“We don’t feel we’re in a position to dictate terms to the boards when it comes to nonclassified staff and faculty members,” DeCample said.
UA board Chairman John Ed Anthony said he agreed with Sugg’s decision.
“We feel modest increases for the coming year are justified, and we hope these increases can be implemented soon if economic conditions permit,” he said.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 06/23/2010