Information provided by PASSHE.
Members of the State College and University Professional Association (SCUPA) have ratified a new contract with the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE).
SCUPA represents approximately 600 admissions, financial aid, residence life and other student support services officers on the 14 PASSHE campuses.
The tentative agreement will now go to the PASSHE Board of Governors for its approval.
Meanwhile, negotiations between PASSHE and the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), the union that represents State System university faculty, resumed today, with the two sides continuing to make progress toward a settlement.
Dent also responded to several inaccurate statements recently made by APSCUF leadership in relations to the continuing negotiations.
PASSHE spends nearly $75 million a year on healthcare for its faculty. If nothing is done to change PASSHE’s current healthcare plan, costs are projected to increase by about $7.5 million next year.
PASSHE pays more than $15,000 annually for family coverage under the healthcare plan it administers for active employees, compared to the $10,140 the state pays for coverage under the Commonwealth’s plan. PASSHE has proposed changes to the plan that would more closely align it with the state-run plan, which provides healthcare coverage for 80,000 state employees, including the Governor and his cabinet.
A related – and still unresolved issue – is the rapidly escalating cost of providing healthcare benefits for eligible retirees. PASSHE presented more detailed information on the transition to a defined contribution plan in an effort to address the systemwide $1.4 billion outstanding financial obligation, which threatens the system’s sustainability. The proposal would not impact any current retirees or current employees; it would be applied only to persons hired by the State System after July 1, 2013.
The issue is similar to the Commonwealth’s pension liability problem. As the governor’s budget secretary said recently: “Absent meaningful structural pension reform, the state’s General Fund budget is on a very predictable path that will force a choice between either fully funding pension obligations or making cuts to the core functions of government.”
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with about 115,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. About 500,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.
Members of the State College and University Professional Association (SCUPA) have ratified a new contract with the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE).
SCUPA represents approximately 600 admissions, financial aid, residence life and other student support services officers on the 14 PASSHE campuses.
The tentative agreement will now go to the PASSHE Board of Governors for its approval.
Meanwhile, negotiations between PASSHE and the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF), the union that represents State System university faculty, resumed today, with the two sides continuing to make progress toward a settlement.
Dent also responded to several inaccurate statements recently made by APSCUF leadership in relations to the continuing negotiations.
PASSHE spends nearly $75 million a year on healthcare for its faculty. If nothing is done to change PASSHE’s current healthcare plan, costs are projected to increase by about $7.5 million next year.
PASSHE pays more than $15,000 annually for family coverage under the healthcare plan it administers for active employees, compared to the $10,140 the state pays for coverage under the Commonwealth’s plan. PASSHE has proposed changes to the plan that would more closely align it with the state-run plan, which provides healthcare coverage for 80,000 state employees, including the Governor and his cabinet.
A related – and still unresolved issue – is the rapidly escalating cost of providing healthcare benefits for eligible retirees. PASSHE presented more detailed information on the transition to a defined contribution plan in an effort to address the systemwide $1.4 billion outstanding financial obligation, which threatens the system’s sustainability. The proposal would not impact any current retirees or current employees; it would be applied only to persons hired by the State System after July 1, 2013.
The issue is similar to the Commonwealth’s pension liability problem. As the governor’s budget secretary said recently: “Absent meaningful structural pension reform, the state’s General Fund budget is on a very predictable path that will force a choice between either fully funding pension obligations or making cuts to the core functions of government.”
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with about 115,000 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. About 500,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.
The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.