Galesburg, IL – Most Carl Sandburg College employees can look forward to a guaranteed pay raise a few years from now. The college's Board of Trustees and the Sandburg Education Association came to an agreement Tuesday night.
Under the agreement's terms, employees will get a 3.95 percent pay increase in both 2013 and 2014. Rates are already set for 2010 through 2012.
SEA negotiator Dave Kellogg says the two sides came to terms by using what's called "interest-based bargaining."
"We surveyed our membership, and asked what language was important to them based on the interpretation of that survey," says Kellogg. "We then put forth our interest items, we kind of categorized them that way."
Kellogg says the school's small size makes it easy for the two sides to reach a deal because they already know each other's needs fairly well.
Administrators are not contractually obligated to receive the pay raises, but Chief Financial Officer Lisa Blake says past practice has been to also offer them the increase should funds be available.