photo by: Dmitry Martirosov/Journal-World

A University of Kansas bus pulls over at the Kansas Memorial Union on Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026.

The University of Kansas announced a 3% pay increase to all eligible employees, shifting from its current model of merit-based pay to adjust for high inflation, Chancellor Doug Girod said in a message on Monday.

The increase will apply to employees across all KU campuses, including Lawrence, Edwards and the Medical Center, and will take effect Jan. 17 of next year.

In his message, Girod said the across-the-board pay increase “recognizes the outstanding contributions of our faculty and staff and advances our commitment to competitive compensation.”

The increase does not apply to all KU employees, and excludes several labor unions, including United Academics at KU — the faculty labor union representing around 1,600 university employees, which is subject to collective bargaining and is still in the process of negotiation with KU. The two have reached their first collective bargaining agreement earlier this year after 92% of eligible members voted in favor of ratifying a three-year-contract.

UAKU did not respond to a Journal-World request for comment.

Employees who are eligible for the pay raise are those hired before Oct. 1, 2026, and include:

• Non-union covered faculty positions

• Unclassified professional staff

• University support staff (non-union)

• Graduate research assistants

• Graduate assistants

• Unclassified professional staff and university support staff on phased retirement

• All temporary unclassified professional staff and university support staff

Employees who are ineligible for the pay raise include:

• All union-covered positions (GTAC, 1290PE/LIUNA, UAKU, KUPOA)

• Non-union covered KU Police Department employees

• New employees hired after Oct. 1, 2026

• Employees that received a salary increase of 3% or higher after July 1, 2026, including reclassifications, that was not part of an open search

• Student hourly employees

• Employees on administrative leave who are not expected to return

Girod said the 3% increase accounts for several years of high inflation on university employees. He noted that while this approach is appropriate this year, the university generally prefers pay increases that are based on performance, experience and competitive market data. KU’s human resources department conducts periodic market surveys to adjust salaries when compensation is out of alignment with internal or external market rates.

“Recognizing and rewarding excellent work is important to our commitment to attracting and retaining talented employees,” Girod said.

Earlier this year, KU approved a 1% pay increase to all employees to “reflect pay ranges aligned with market rates.” On Monday, Girod said the university still has a long way to go, and bringing all employees to “appropriate benchmarks” will require more work.

Girod on Monday also reiterated a message he shared with KU at his State of the University address last month, saying that although the university’s financial footing is strong, “any significant new investments likely will require additional revenue or difficult choices about spending elsewhere.”

The message was echoed by Provost Arash Mafi last week, who during his first State of the Campus address said KU has “very limited room to maneuver” financially.