To the editor:
Thanks to Dave Ranney for his most interesting article of Feb. 28 on unclassified pay parity. As president of KU's Unclassified Professional Staff Assn. (UPSA), I have been dealing with a very disheartened group of employees this year. No one in UPSA needs to be educated about the importance of retaining quality faculty. I am struck, nevertheless, by Provost Shulenburger's comment in the story that he is against pitting faculty against unclassified professional staff, as though that would be the consequence of House Speaker Glasscock's suggestion.
To find the truth of the matter, one must go to Senate Bill 345, Section 76(a) which reads: "In each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2004, the state educational institutions are entitled to faculty salary enhancement grants in amounts to be determined by the state board." This set the stage for pitting faculty against other unclassified employees. Why anyone would think otherwise continues to baffle me.
Further, given the wording of SB 345 it is disingenuous for KU's administration and the Board of Regents to claim they did not know what would happen with respect to the salary disparity between faculty and other unclassified staff. In fact this disparity, unless something is done to amend the bill, will continue until FY2004.
I find merit in House Speaker Glasscock's suggestion, though I have little confidence that anything will happen. If he is tired this year of being "beaten up" by his constituency, it is only going to get worse as long as the existing section of SB345 reads as it does. It is time for a rational and sane look at this situation, and I encourage the Board of Regents staff to do just that.
Oddly enough, I agree with Provost Shulenburger's comment that more money needs to be found not just spread existing money around. Ironically, the latter is precisely how we got into this mess in the first place. How long does the State of Kansas intend to limp along and gut the budgets of its higher education system? Time to think of taxes folks raise 'em! Or, exempt your poorly paid state employees (classified and unclassified staff) from state income tax, which feels too much like a kick-back to me these days.
Sandra Wick,
Lawrence
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