YSU trustees OK contracts for faculty, classified staff

The Youngstown State University Board of Trustees has approved new three-year contracts with faculty and classified staff workers.

The university made the announcement Friday.

The contracts call for pay freezes in the first year and small increases in the final two years. The agreements also include increased premium shares and out-of-pocket expenses for health insurance, according to the university. 

The university states that the faculty union's agreement includes no increase in salary this year, followed by two percent raises in each of the final two years of the contract. The agreement comes after faculty union members went on a three-day strike back in October over contract disputes. 

The agreement with the classified union calls for no increase in pay this year, followed by a 1.25 percent increase next year and the equivalent of two percent in the third year.

Both contracts include 15 percent employee premium contributions for health insurance in the first two years, increasing to 18 percent in year three. Both contracts also include increases in-office visits, out-of-pocket maximums, and prescriptions, the university stated. 

"On behalf of the board, we want to thank the employees in both of these unions, as well as all other employees at the university, for their hard work, perseverance and continued commitment to the success of their students in these challenging times," YSU President Jim Tressel said.