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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 9, 1987)
r AC/I n i» [WEATHER: Wednesday, partly 1^% •*! I IflSidG sunny with brisk northwest winds. I 1^1 |%7 I ., Highs in the 40s. Wednesday night, ^F Es £ Wmm 1 I I News Digest.Page 2 mostly clear. Low in the mid-teens to 1^^ I _ ■ J m I Editorial.. Page 4 rNeDraskan I December 9,1987University of Nebraska-Lincoln Vol. 86 No. 72 Minimum wage hike could raise housing costs By Brandon Loomis Staff Reporter Although a proposed increase in the national minimum wage could mean higher housing payments and student fees, University of Nebraska Lincoln officials agree the increase is long overdue. Kirk Beyer, UNL classification and compensation manager, said several proposals to increase the minimum wage for the first time since 1981 recently were introduced to Congress. The proposal that seems to have the most backing would raise the minimum wage from $3.35 per hour to $4.65 per hour over a three-year period, he said. Beyer said if Congress passes the proposal, minimum wage will in crease by 50 cents in 1988 and by 40 cents in each of the next two years. Douglas Zatcchka, director of UNL housing, said the housing de i partment employs about 600 students with a payroll of about $900,000 per year. If Congress were to increase minimum wage to $4.65, the payroll would jump to about $1.35 million. Zatechka said the housing depart ment teceives no university funds, so residents would have to make up the difference in housing increases. “There’s no question an increase in minimum wage will increase hous ing costs,” he said. An increase to $4.65 will cost students $90 extra per year, he said. Daryl Swanson, director of Ne braska unions, said the unionsemploy 250 students at or near minimum wage. Swanson said about two-thirds of the unions’ S375,000-pcr-ycar stu dent payroll comes from profits, mainly in the food service depart ments. With a minimum wage of $4.65 the payroll will increase by i about $120,000, he said. “The result would probably be an increase in food service pricing,” he said. The other third of the union payroll receives money through student fees, which are likely to increase as well, he said. Beyer said the university has about 2,200 “C’Minc employees, the lowest pay category. He said the lowest-paid of these employees cam $3.76 per hour. The university can compete with other Lincoln service businesses for workers because many pay less than $3.76, he said. However, with the proposed 50-cent increase for 1988’s minimum wage, competition will increase, he said. “We will be in a much less com petitive recruitment posture,” he said. Swanson said the opposite is true of the unions’ fast-food employees. He said most fast-food businesses in the private sector have moved to a higher than minimum wage entry level, taking potential union employ ees with them. A minimum wage increase will make the unions more competitive in the job market, he said. Beyer said if the minimum wage reaches $4.65, the university’s salary structure will be affected. The university currently has 13 pay classes. Beyer said the wage in crease will leave the university with only two options. The first would be to move each class up the same per centage in pay. The second and least desirable option would be to move all classes currently under $4.65 up to it, Beyer said. That would cause “com pression,” pushing the bottom pay classes together with no reward for higher-skilled employees, he said. The Fair Labor Standards Act al lows some employees to be exempted from overtime pay if they earn at least $155 a week. “That limit will surely increase with the (new) minimum wage,” he said. As a result, some employees who do not qualify for overtime may qual ify after the increase, he said. There fore, the university may end up pay ing more overtime as well as higher wages, he said. Beyer said the university either will have to cope with these problems by increasing its revenues or by de creasing its number of employees. “I think employees deserve every dime of the increase,” Zatechka said, “but I hate to see students pick up the bigger share.” Swanson said he thinks the Ne braska Legislature should increase taxes to come up with the needed money. “That might be the most difficult challenge of them all,” he said. Kupp plans to up faculty salaries By Victoria Ayotte Staff Reporter Increased faculty salaries will be a major goal for state Sen. Lee Rupp of Monroe when he takes over the posi tion of vice president for University Relations at the University of Ne braska Jan.1. Rupp said he has many goals for his new job, but increased faculty salaries is the main one. “AH others pale by comparison,” he said. “I’m going to talk to the Legisla ture and convince them we are near a crisis as far as holding valuable fac ulty members,” he said. Rupp was recommended for the position Monday by NU President Ronald Roskens. He is expected to be approved Saturday by the NU Board of Regents. Rupp’s good voting record was one of the factors that made him the best choice for the position, said Joe Rowson, director of public relations for NU. His experience in govern ment was also an obvious advantage, he said. Rupp is a “known quantity as a senator,” Rowson said. Rupp has been a member of the Legislature since 1983. In that time, he voted to appropriate money to UNL 15 of 20 times. Twice he was excused and did not vote, and three times he voted against appropriations to the university. Two of the three times Rupp voted against appropriating money to the university occurred in 1983, his first year in the Legislature. Rupp said these votes look place under different circumstances. The university had not been “hammered” as much by the Legislature as they have been in the last four years, he said. The bills Rupp voted against were appropriations for construction, work-study for post-secondary stu dents and a scholarship program. Rupp recently supported appropria tions for the renovation of Morrill Hall, thcNebraskaCollege of Techni cal Agriculture at Curtis and faculty salary increases. Rupp said he will try to convince the Legislature that the university is an investment instead of an expendi ture. The university is “the major re source” in Nebraska, Rupp said. Rupp applied for the position in July.Oneof the reasons he wanted the job was the increased salary, he said. State senators make $4,800 a year, while the former vice president of university relations, Rudy Lewis, made $76,(XX) last year. Rupp said he doesn’t expect to make as much as Lewis because he is new to the position. Rupp will resign from the Legisla ture Dec. 31. Gov. Kay Orr has made no decision regarding Rupp’s re placement yet, said Bob Cochrane, an aide to Orr. Rupp said one of the reasons he will be able to be successful at the position is his experience with the government and five years’ experi ence in public relations with LeDioyt Land Co. of Omaha. His experience this year as chair man of the Legislature’s Govern ment, Military and Veterans’ Affairs Committee will also help, he said. Rowson said Rupp will have to take care of news media relations and work with community groups and local governments around the state in his new position. Freshman football eligibility Faculty Senate recommends elimination By Bob Nelson Staff Reporter The University of Nebraska-Lin coln Faculty Senate passed resolu tions Tuesday recommending the elimination of freshman eligibility in varsity football and the shortening of the length of athletic practice and playing seasons. The recommendations, a result of a study done by the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee, will now be sent to Chancellor Martin Massen galc. Masscngalc then may vote for NCAA legislation supporting the proposals. The committee report states that the removal of freshman eligibility, and shorter practice and playing sea sons would provide more academic support for UNL student athletes. If the recommendations were imple mented, football players with fresh man standing would not be allowed to compete on the varsity level. Mike Steinman, committee chair man, said keeping freshmen from playing varsity football will allow athletes to adapt to college life with out the pressure and extra require ments of varsity football. The committee made no specific proposals on a shortened season, Steinman said. He stressed that the committee was not asking for fewer games, but wants a more compact season to lessen the burden on ath letes’ academic requirements. Steinman said there is a “slim to nil” chance that the proposal would get a majority vote from the NCAA. He said other colleges do not have the resources to give scholarships to non playing football players. In its report to the Faculty Senate, the committee stated that some members believed no NCAA or campus rules were violated during the summer sessions of Health 2(X) or Health 496. Some members said the report did not yield clear evidence that there were violations. The two classes were investigated because of unusually high grade aver ages. The classes were mostly occu pied by football players having aca demic difficulties, ihc report said. The average grade for the summer session of Health 200was 3.47 and the average grade in Health 496 was 3.6. The average for all sections of the same class in the spring of 1979 was 3.32. Also, some committee members felt it is the job of departments, schools and colleges to investigate the actions of individual faculty members. The report said a majority of the committees believe there was a viola tion of the “spirit” of campus pol ic ics. They believe the pattern of facts sug gests that some student athletes may have been allowed to get academic credits without working as hard as other students. The report says they believe the nature of the class and its grade average have created an ap pearance of abuse harmful to UNL’s academic and athletic programs and reputation. The report says the committee believes it is important to investigate evidence that the pressures of inter collegiate athletic competition may be compromising UNL’s pursuit of its educational mission. I “