BARGAINING
UPDATES

July 18, 2025

Key Takeaways

• We presented counterproposals on Health & Safety, Workplace Wellbeing, and the Impact of Technology in the morning, and countered on Provisional Periods in the afternoon

• The administration presented a counter to our Provisional Period proposal and finally responded to our Non-Discrimination proposal in the morning, and countered on Health and Safety in the afternoon. They refused to engage with us on Workplace Wellbeing, saying, “It just doesn't work for us.”

• We began our economic discussions with a proposal that would give all represented staff an immediate 12.5% increase to their base salary 

On July 15, 2025 your bargaining committee engaged in a disappointing session with the administration. Despite making several moves in our proposals that we felt would help us get closer to an agreement, the administration made few substantive moves in our direction. For example, we don't think that staff who are trying to advance their careers through promotions, reclassifications, or transfers should have to endure a provisional period at the start of the new position. Provisional periods only serve to strip away benefits and make employees vulnerable to being terminated without just cause - in other words, you can be fired for any reason while in a provisional period. The administration remained committed to insisting on provisional periods after every promotion and every transfer, as well as after your existing position is reclassified. Some of you have told us that having to suffer through a provisional period made you question whether to accept a promotion or not. This is unacceptable!

Additionally, in their Health and Safety counter, which generally failed to engage substantively with staff’s concerns, the administration actually moved backward, changing their proposal to limit the Union’s ability to convene labor-management meetings regarding safety issues only once annually. We think safety is a year-round concern and that we should be able to meet with management about safety issues more frequently if necessary.  

Most disappointing of all was their refusal to engage with us on our Workplace Wellbeing proposal. This proposal was a replacement for our Inclusive Work Environments proposal that they had previously refused to bargain over. At that time, they told us that most of the protections (for staff who need medical or religious accommodations, to support gender equity, and to protect staff who are breastfeeding) were already covered by laws and policies. We understand that laws and policies can change, so we have an obligation to protect our bargaining unit members. This time, we were told, "This just doesn't work for us." with no further explanation.

While we will keep fighting for these and other non-economic protections, we know that salaries are extremely important to staff. Many of us are underpaid and our raises have not kept up with inflation through the years. Our chancellor’s salary is more than 29 times the minimum salary for staff, which is $16.50/hr. We are looking forward to the economic stage of bargaining, and have begun by submitting a Memo of Understanding that would allow us to get immediate raises WITHOUT also forcing us to accept increased healthcare costs. We will also bargain over future raises that will become part of our contract, but for now, we are asking for a 12.5% increase to represented staff members' base salaries. We eagerly look forward to seeing whether the administration agrees that the important work we’re doing deserves fair pay. 

We know that for some of you, questions remain about whether your position is included in the bargaining unit or not. We have a committee that has been meeting with the administration to address these concerns. For now, continue to direct questions to staffunionofpitt@usw.org or fill out the form on the FAQ page.

Finally, we are planning to host a virtual town hall in early September. Members of the bargaining committee will discuss the tentative agreements that we already won, and will summarize the proposals that we currently have on the table. Look for an announcement with the details in future communications.

In solidarity,

Your Pitt Staff Bargaining Committee

Jen Goeckeler-Fried, Chair, Biological Sciences, DSAS
Mark Brown, Secretary
Kearsten Adams, Academic Advising, UPG
Shawn Alfonso Wells, Pitt Global Experiences, UCIS
Lydia Chmill, Disability Resources & Services, OTC
Emily Daller, University Child Development Center, OHR
Jay Hornack, Law 
Todd Shaffer, Office of Student Life, UPJ
Michelle Utz-Kiley, Epidemiology, SPH
Dan Wyszomierski, UPCI/NSABP
Matt Nader, USW
Nate Kilbert, USW
Don Shaffer, USW
Bernie Hall, District 10 Director, USW