Jun. 30, 2020
Exempt Employees - Salary Freeze
Dear CWU Exempt Employee,
As we end an academic year full of great challenges, I want to express my gratitude for all that you have done during these past several months. The pandemic has presented us with many challenges, and you have excelled in meeting each of them.
Unfortunately, the difficulties we face continue. In a message earlier this month, I noted that the impact on our university’s budget is substantial. We are facing a nearly $12 million reduction in revenues for the coming fiscal year, due primarily to a 15% reduction in State funding.
I have already limited spending for travel and purchasing, and I have frozen hiring. While those measures are having the planned effect on our budget projections, they will not be sufficient in the coming year. I am therefore also freezing salaries for all non-faculty exempt employees for the period July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021. Our faculty have ratified an extension to their contract that maintains their current salaries without a cost of living increase, subject to an early fall compensation negotiation that will be evaluated in the context of the university’s overall financial condition as of fall 2020. Governor Inslee has stated that represented and non-represented classified employees will receive bargained increases.
This additional burden is not a reflection of the commitment to our university that you demonstrate or the quality of service you give to Central. It is, however, a step that we, as an institution, must reluctantly take to manage our forecasted financial shortfall.
Please know that I, the Board of Trustees, and the university’s leadership team will continue to closely monitor the economic situation throughout the summer and the coming year. We will continue to weather these challenges and come out #CWUTogether.
Sincerely,
James L. Gaudino
President