Strike Settled at Adelphi as the University and Local 153 Clerical Staff Reach Accord
Staff to Return to Work on Thursday, December 14
Garden City, NY
December 12, 2000
The membership of the University's Local 153 collective bargaining unit and the executive committee of the Board of Trustees of Adelphi University, acting on behalf of the full board, each today ratified an agreement reached by the negotiating committees this weekend that establishes a five-year contract for Adelphi's clerical staff and brings them back to work on Thursday morning, December 14.
In an announcement to the Adelphi campus community, President Robert Scott said today, "It gives me a great deal of pleasure to announce that the University and Local 153 members have ratified the agreement reached on Saturday. An end to this strike is a relief to everyone involved. It is of course critical that we welcome back our colleagues with warmth and understanding, letting them know how much they have been missed. I cannot imagine any happier news for the entire Adelphi community as we go into this holiday season and the new year."
Clerical staff members of the collective bargaining unit, Local 153 of the Office and Professional Employees International Union, AFL-CIO, went on strike on September 8, 2000. The previous agreement expired on August 31, 2000. The new agreement dates retroactively from September 1, 2000, to August 31, 2005, although staff is not paid for days on strike.
The memorandum of agreement reached this weekend by the negotiating committees for the University and for Local 153 calls for a five-year collective bargaining agreement with wage increases, effective September 1, of three percent in the first two years, four percent in the third, and a guaranteed minimum three percent in the fourth and fifth years, with a concomitant increase in the base salaries in clerical grades two through six. Each member of the collective bargaining unit also will receive a $6 supplemental weekly increase on March 1 in each year of the agreement. In the fourth and fifth years of the agreement, increases will be a minimum of three percent and may be more (up to five percent in the fourth year, and six percent in the fifth year) if the rate of then-current increases in the cost of living exceed three percent. Further, if the University reaches certain enrollment targets in the years 2001-2002 and subsequent years of the contract, an additional lump! ! -sum bonus equaling one percent of the member's salary will be paid to each member on May 1 of those academic years.
The agreement also calls for Adelphi participation in the Local 153 Pension Fund. A very important breakthrough in negotiations occurred on November 28, when the Union advised the University of its willingness to amend the pension fund agreement allowing Adelphi to participate without incurring liability in a "free look" arrangement until August 2005.
Copies of the memorandum of agreement will be made available on request.
Adelphi University, chartered in 1896, was the first institution of higher education for liberal arts and sciences on Long Island. Through its schools and programs -- The College of Arts and Science, the Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies, the Honors College, University College/ABLE Program, and the Schools of Business, Education, Nursing, and Social Work -- the co-educational university offers undergraduate and graduate degrees, as well as professional and educational programs for adults. Adelphi University currently enrolls over 7,000 students from 37 states and 60 foreign countries. With its main campus in Garden City and centers in Manhattan, Hauppauge, and Poughkeepsie, the University maintains a commitment to liberal studies in tandem with rigorous professional preparation.
Media Contact
For additional information, please contact:
Lori Duggan Gold
Vice President for Communications
p - 516.877.3693
f - 516.877.3266
e - duggangold@adelphi.edu
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