The California State University (CSU) announced today that it will be providing all instructional faculty, librarians, counselors and coaches with a general salary increase of 5% effective January 31, 2024, concluding contract negotiations and exhausting the state's impasse process. This decision was made after the latest round of negotiations with the California Faculty Association (CFA) failed to yield an agreement that would provide faculty salary increases while still allowing the CSU to best serve students within the limits of its resources.
Throughout the bargaining process, the CFA never veered from its initial salary demand, which was not financially viable and would have resulted in massive cuts to campuses — including layoffs — that would have jeopardized the CSU's educational mission. In addition to the general salary increase, the CSU will be increasing department chairperson pay and allowing for modest parking fee increases.
“With this action, we will ensure that well-deserved raises get to our faculty members as soon as possible," said Leora Freedman, vice chancellor for human resources. "We have been in the bargaining process for eight months and the CFA has shown no movement, leaving us no other option."
The 5% salary increase is consistent with agreements the CSU has already reached with five of its labor unions.
“Our overriding responsibility is to manage a systemwide budget in a fiscally sustainable manner," said Freedman. “We are committed to paying fair, competitive salaries and benefits for our hard-working faculty members, who are delivering instruction to our students every day and are the cornerstone of our university system. But we must also operate within our means to protect the long-term success and stability of the university, our students and our faculty."
Without a change in bargaining position by CFA, this concludes bargaining on their contract reopener. The CSU and CFA can now begin successor bargaining on the full contract. The CSU remains committed to the collective bargaining process.
For more information, view the CSU Labor and Employee Relations website.
About the California State University
The California State University is the nation's largest four-year public university system, providing transformational opportunities for upward mobility to more than 450,000 students from all socioeconomic backgrounds. More than half of CSU students are people of color, and nearly one-third of them are first-generation college students. Because the CSU's 23 universities provide a high-quality education at an incredible value, they are rated among the best in the nation for promoting social mobility in national college rankings from U.S. News & World Report, the Wall Street Journal and Washington Monthly. The CSU powers California and the nation, sending nearly 127,000 career-ready graduates into the workforce each year. In fact, one in every 20 Americans holding a college degree earned it at the CSU. Connect with and learn more about the CSU in the CSU newsroom.