SIUC collective bargaining proponents will argue tonight that University faculty could earn more if they adopt the procedure, but some SIUC Faculty Senate members say collective bargaining is not good for the University as a whole.

SIUC faculty salaries are lower than the average for Illinois universities and community colleges, a study by the Illinois Board of Higher Education reports.

The study found the average Illinois university faculty salary is $47,600, the average community college faculty salary is $45,800 and SIUC’s average faculty salary is $44,200. This was reported in a paper compiled by the executive council of the SIUC chapter of the Illinois Education Association-National Education Association, urging adoption of collective bargaining at SIUC.

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The SIUC IEA/NEA will hold its annual meeting tonight discussing faculty salaries and how collective bargaining could help negotiate higher salaries for SIUC faculty.

Jim Sullivan, president of the SIUC chapter of the IEA-NEA, said

the only way faculty can change policies and get higher salaries at SIUC is by getting legal status through the organization.

The purpose of the organization is to achieve collective bargaining for faculty at SIUC, Sullivan said.

Collective bargaining is any union-management negotiation. According to the 1995 NEA Almanac of Higher Education, the average salaries of faculty in 4-year institutions with collective bargaining agreements is $9,354 more than the average in non-bargaining institutions.

Sullivan said without the collective bargaining status, faculty only serve an advisory role at the University.

According to a report compiled by the executive council of the SIUC/IEA-NEA, constituency groups like the Faculty Senate do necessary organizational tasks but are ineffective at causing changes.

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The report states that the Faculty Senate and other faculty constituency groups debate issues while others make the real decision .

We have a lot of positive signals from faculty that collective bargaining is what they need to accomplish things in the future of SIUC, Sullivan said.

However, Paul Harre, an associate professor in the College of Technical Careers and a Faculty Senate member, said the administrators at SIUC are the real decision makers and that is how it should be.

There has to be people in charge, Harre said. The administration gets input from all the constituency groups and what may be good for faculty members may be bad for the students.

We, as the Faculty Senate, give input for decisions and hopefully the administration will make the decision that is best for everyone.

Harre said collective bargaining is a selfish type thing because if money is given to the faculty, it is taken away from other places.

Edward Neuman, a professor in mathematics and Faculty Senate member, said the Faculty Senate does have a part in making changes in the University.

Neuman said the Faculty Senate has a different mission than collective bargaining because the senate focuses more on the whole University than just themselves.

The meeting’s guest speaker will be Hazel Loucks, Higher Education Director of the IEA-NEA. Loucks is a former member of the SIUC College of Education and she will address the issue of Why Organize at SIUC.

Tonight’s meeting starts at 5:15 at the United Methodist Student Center/Wesley Foundation, 816 S. Illinois Ave.