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July 21, 2005

Average faculty pay hike up slightly last year

The average salary raise awarded to Pitt continuing, full-time faculty, excluding the School of Medicine, was 4.3 percent last year, a slight increase over the previous year’s 4.2 percent.

The figures were part of a report compiled by the Office of Institutional Research for the University Senate budget policies committee (BPC). The report examined salary raises awarded last fall, based on employee performance in fiscal year 2004.

The original report, discussed during a public session of BPC on May 20, contained some errors on faculty salary information. According to the Office of Institutional Research, a small number of updated salary data had not been transferred from the payroll system for the report. (The glitch only affected the report, not salary payments to faculty.) A revised report was released to Pitt administrators on July 1, with the University Times receiving it July 6.

The report generally was well received by members of BPC. “It’s nice to see that average salaries in every division grew more than the 3 percent salary increase pool, as the result of various academic initiatives and other factors,” said Stephen Carr, BPC chairman.

Average faculty raises ranged from 3.4 percent in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and the School of Dental Medicine to 7.3 percent in the medical school and the School of Medicine Division Administration (which includes three faculty in the Division of Laboratory Animal Resources), excluding basic science departments.

“The administration is clearly working hard to attain competitive faculty salaries, and seems to be doing a pretty good job in improving our competitive posture,” Carr said. For example, Pitt faculty salaries continue to gain ground on faculty salaries at other public Association of American Universities, he pointed out.

Faculty in 13 Pitt responsibility units received average raises equal to or above the University-wide average of 4.3 percent. In 11 units, the average raise was less.

Pitt’s salary pool increased by 3 percent for the fiscal year that began last July 1, distributed as follows: 1.5 percent salary maintenance raises for employees (staff as well as faculty) who received at least satisfactory performance evaluations; 1 percent for merit, market and equity raises as determined at the unit level, and 0.5 percent to address market competition and compensation issues.

The reason that the average salary raise of 4.3 percent for continuing, full-time faculty exceeded both the base salary increase allotted to schools (2.5 percent) and the University’s overall salary pool increase (3 percent) is that funds were distributed based on each unit’s budgeted number of employees, regardless of how many of those positions were filled at the time.

Some BPC members were concerned that the maintenance of real salary for satisfactory performance was set at 1.5 percent, below the inflation rate of 1.9 percent. That gap affected a significant number of faculty who performed satisfactorily but “still suffered a drop in real salary,” said BPC member Phil Wion. Carr added: “I doubt that there would ever be enough dollars to fulfill all the diverse purposes and interests that inform the determination of salaries, but the loss of real wages for faculty judged to be doing at least satisfactory work can have a corrosive effect on the collegial operation of the University, especially if it persists over several years.”

Among Pitt’s 1,654 continuing, full-time faculty last year (excluding faculty in the School of Medicine and division administration):

• 40 faculty (2.4 percent) got raises of less than 1.5 percent.

• 142 faculty (8.6 percent) received between 1.5 and 1.8 percent.

• 561 faculty (33.9 percent) got between 1.9 and 2.5 percent.

• 545 faculty (33 percent) received between 2.6 and 5 percent.

• 171 faculty (10.3 percent) got between 5.1 and 7.5 percent.

• 92 faculty (5.6 percent) received between 7.6 and 10 percent.

• 103 faculty (6.2 percent) got 10.1 percent or more.

Faculty salary increases in the School of Medicine and division administration do not include compensation received through the University of Pittsburgh Physicians practice plan.

Among the School of Medicine’s 899 continuing, full-time faculty last year (including division administration):

• 359 faculty (39.9 percent) got raises of less than 1.5 percent.

• 7 faculty (0.8 percent) received 1.5 to 1.8 percent.

• 25 faculty (2.8 percent) got between 1.9 and 2.5 percent.

• 268 faculty (29.8 percent) received between 2.6 and 5 percent.

• 80 faculty (8.9 percent) got between 5.1 and 7.5 percent.

• 25 faculty (2.8 percent) received between 7.6 and 10 percent.

• 135 faculty (15 percent) got 10.1 percent or more.

-—Mary Ann Thomas


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