March 21--The CSU Board of Trustees approved massive pay increases for CSU executives yesterday. The salary hikes go to two incoming campus presidents, including $324,500 plus housing and a $12,000 per year car allowance for the next CSU Fullerton president, Mildred García, formerly the president at CSU Dominguez Hills, who was given a raise of $29,500 for moving from Dominguez Hills to Fullerton.
Leroy Morishita will get $303,660 plus $60,000 per year housing and $12,000 per year car allowance as the new CSU East Bay president, a $27,605 raise. He previously served as the interim president at CSU East Bay at a salary of $276,055 annually.
The vote in favor of raises, nearly unanimous except for just three "no" votes, came during the very same trustee meeting at which the trustees ratified a collective bargaining agreement with CSUEU.
“I’m constantly asked why the CSUEU bargaining team is failing to get raises for our people when managers are getting raises,” CSUEU VP for Representation Russell Kilday-Hicks told the trustees during yesterday’s public comment session.
“This public system is in your trust,” he continued. “You are not the ‘Rubber Stamp Committee’ for administrative decisions. There will be continuing repercussions for your ill-advised decisions.”
As CSUEU President Pat Gantt put it, “This is an abuse of power along the same lines—and by the same trustees—as the board meeting last year during which the San Diego State president received a huge pay increase over his predecessor’s salary at the same time that new tuition hikes were enacted.”
He added, “Only action on the part of the governor and the legislature will prevent the trustees from continuing to take these types of tone-deaf actions in the future.”
Just this morning, the Senate Education Committee approved legislation (SB 952-Alquist) to allow double-digit pay hikes for CSU executives making $300,000 to $600,000, while killing a bill (SB 967-Yee) that would have prohibited pay hikes for top administrators during bad budget years or within two years of a student fee increase.
“It is another sad day for our students,” said Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco). “Unfortunately, the Education Committee has sent the completely wrong message. Rather than stand up for students and faculty, they protected the 1 percent and condoned CSU’s bad behavior. CSU students and California taxpayers deserve better than the status quo.”
CSUEU-represented employees are encouraged to email the head of the Senate Education Committee to voice their opinion: Sen. Alan Lowenthal, senator.lowenthal@sen.ca.gov.
Read Sen. Yee's March 21 press release about the committee's action.
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