friday,, September tt, 1981,
lincolrr,. nebraska vol. 107 no. 14
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UNO faculty, staff approve
formal contract settlement
Photo by Dave Bentz
Jim Anderson takes advantage of the new addition to Love Library located in the
basement.
By Charles Flowerday
The UNO Faculty Staff Association has
approved a contract settlement with the
NU Board of Regents that will give them a
two-year 21.55 percent pay increase and
back pay with 14 percent interest from
July of 1980, if the regents also approve it.
The 194-member union ratified what
would be the first formal contract between
the regents and a faculty union. The vote
was 134-10.
Suzanne Moshier, president of the UNO
chapter of the American Association of
University Professors, told the Omaha
World-Herald that she expects the regents
to accept the settlement because there are
benefits for both parties.
Richard Wood, NU legal counsel, said
the regent's negotiating team will recom
mend that the board approve the agree
ment. Wood said, that pending approval by the
regents, terms of the settlement will be
filed with the Commission of Industrial Re
lations. Under Nebraska law, the commission
has the power to resolve contract disputes
concerning public employees.
University officials said the average sala
ry for nine-month employees covered by
settlement would rise from $20,826 to
$25,314. The UNO professors' last raise
was for the 1979-80 fiscal year.
Major concession
"The regents made a major concession
on merit," Hugh Cowdin second vice presi
dent of the union, said. One of the main
points of conflict concerned the distribu
tion of merit increases, Cowdin said.
He said many professors thought the
distribution was unfair because only 20
percent of the UNO faculty were receiving
raises above the average allocation appro
priated, by the Nebraska Legislature.
Cowdin said he thought the new con
tract provided for a more equitable distri
bution of merit money . The regents agreed
to eliminate a, stipulation of 2 percent for
merit increases. The new agreement calls
for a $978 raise for promotion to a 12-
month full professor for the 1980-81 year,
and a 1.94 percent merit increase for 1981-
82- , , ,
"More faculty will be eligible for less
merit," Cowdin said, commenting on what
he said was a more equitable arrangement.
The second major concession involved
interest compounded monthly from July 1,
1980 or Sept. 1, 1980 was a stipulation of
the settlement, the World-Herald reported.
Cowdin listed parity with UNL faculty
and NU Medical Center staff on fringe ben
efits as another major feature of the pro
posed contract. This includes reimburse
ment for $7 per month paid for health in
surance for 1980-81 and $10 per month
for 1981-82.
Research support
Another important issue involved a
commitment by the regents to work to
ward parity with UNL on research support,
and a commitment to set up a committee
of faculty and administration representa
tives to incorporate a stipulation about
faculty governance into a collective bar
gaining contract.
This would guarantee faculty input into
decisions affecting faculty working condi
tions, specifically work load, promotions
and appointments.
James Maynard, head of the NU negoti
ating team, said the agreement is the best
settlement either side could expect. Ac
cording the the World-Herald, Maynard
said the agreement upholds the regent's be
lief that no one is entitled to a raise just for
working. All raises are subject to a satis
factory performance evaluation, he said.
Maynard. said the regents are likely to be
less satisfied with the size of merit in
creases for 1980-81, but that the amount
of money is what the regents had offered
and merit increases are a significant part of
the 1981-82 contract,
The settlement ends two years of nego
tiations, lawsuits and picketing.
If it is approved by the regents, the
AAUP will drop its lawsuit seeking tempo
rary pay raises for the negotiation period.
Moshier said she believes the 10.4 per
cent first-year raise is more than the pro
fessors would have received wihtout form
in a union.
Credit union holds loans to broaden capital base
By Melinda Norris
The ASUN Credit Union has not financed a loan since
June as a conservative reaction to. the closing of savings
and loans banks and; other credit unions across the coun
try manager Randy Smejdir said
Current assets are $24,000 but Smejdir said "we need
a broader base to be more secured
"A lot of savings and loans were raking in the money a
few years ago he said "but they overextended them
selves and are now struggling to keep going
We are like any business We need a certain amount to
cover bans if they go bad
Smejdir said $8,000 of current assets are locked into
bonds and$5,000 to $10,000 are in ah inter-capital asset
account
Smejdir said he anticipates loans being made soon after
students begin depositing money in the credit union.
"The $24,000 has been building up since school star
ted ,' Smejdir said
The credit union has fewer then 300 active members,
Smejdir said but it makes about 3,000 loans a year..
Membership in the credit union is open to UNL stu
dents faculty staff and alumni To become a member a
minimum deposit of $5 and a one-time membership fee of
25 cents is required Deposits are insured by the National
Speaker: Designing center difficult
By Roger Aden
Limited space made designing the new Milton Wick
Alumni Center a difficult task according to the jury chair
man for the design competition James Murphy
Murphy executive editor of Progressive Architecture
magazine and a 1964 UNL graduate opened the 1981 Hyde
Lecture Series yesterday with a review of the designs sub
mitted He said the L-shaped plot of land just east of the Histor
ical Society Museum didnl leave the architects much room
to design a building that met the specifications required by
the jury and Nebraska Alumni Association
Those specifications included room for future expan
sion a garden area outside the center and the Great Hall
which would be used for banquets entertainment functions
and social gatherings according to Cecil Steward, dean of
the College of Architecture and professional adviser to the
jury
But Murphy said the winner of the competition Gwath-may-Segel
Architects of New York City did an excellent
job in meeting the specifications and designing a beautiful
building
"There's a friendly sort of feel to it' he said "and the
treatment of the garden is absolutely superb The level of
thought that went into this design is quite high
However Murphy expressed disappointment in the se
cond set of schematic drawings the jury requested
"We asked for some changes in the design he said
"but I wish they (the drawings) could have been the other
way around The first scheme had more of a spontaneity to
it and the Great Hall design was much better
The second set of drawings is being revised and a final
design will be completed soon according to Steward
He said construction on the $2 million, alumni-funded
structure will begin in March and should be completed 18
to 24 months later
Credit Union Administration and all accounts pay 7 per
cent quarterly. Share certificates similar to certificates of
deposit for six months also are available paying 8 percent
interest with an effective yearly rate of 9.2 percent.
The credit union has few depositors because it receives
little publicity ASUN Sen. Fran Grabowski said.
Located in Nebraska Union 236 the credit union has a
visibility problem he said.
"At least when it was located on the main floor people
would walk by and say 'what is that? But now it's up
stairs Grabowski said.
"The credit union is the best service offered by ASUN
as an aid to students but no one takes us up on it,' Gra
bowski said
Because it is operated by student and faculty volun
teers, the credit union offers experience for anyone intere
sted in banking he said
The credit union is seeking a bookkeeper and a market
ing director to handle advertising and public relations
Smejdir said credit hours are available through the busi
ness college for students volunteering their services at the
credit union.
testis friday
Batten Down the Hatches; A Lincoln Action Program
project helps low-income people weatherproof their
homes Page 1 1
At Last; The 1981 UNL football season kicksoff Satur
day when the Huskers open with a 1:05 p.m game
ui Iowa City Page 12.
Rastapharoah; Peter Tosh, acclaimed king of reggae since
the loss of Bob Marley, discusses his music and its
relation with Rastafarian beliefs Page 16
