By MARTY LEVINE

Since a new Voluntary Early Retirement Program (VERP) was announced Oct. 21 for eligible non-represented faculty and staff, Human Resources has “got a ton” of inquiries from union-represented staff about a VERP plan for them, Staff Council member Mark Kotzin, an HR communications manager, told the group’s Oct. 28 meeting. Kotzin added that negotiations with the union are ongoing and said a VERP for union members would likely happen. “It's in the works – just nothing announced yet,” he said.

The United Steelworkers (USW) represents both the faculty and staff unions at Pitt and is engaged with the University administration on the details of a VERP for represented employees. Tyler Bickford, professor of English and president of the Pitt faculty union, described the parties this week as “hopefully close” on a VERP agreement.

Other Staff Council news 

The organization released the findings of its 2026 Safety Crawl on the Pittsburgh campus, which details “deteriorated sidewalks, curbs and pavement; crosswalk and pedestrian-crossing safety and vehicles blocking or endangering pedestrian/bike spaces.” On May 5, members of the organization were joined by Pitt Police and staff from the offices of Planning, Design, & Construction, Environmental Health & Safety, Engagement & Community Affairs and others on a walking inspection of O’Hara Street and Fifth Avenue between Bellefield and DeSoto.

While most Staff Council meetings remain online, the group announced that its February 17 meeting will be in person, with a location to be announced.

Marty Levine is a staff writer for the University Times. Reach him at martyl@pitt.edu or 412-758-4859.

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