Faculty Senate

Faculty Salary Equity Committee Operating Papers

I. Status

The Faculty Salary Equity Committee is a standing committee of the Faculty Senate Welfare Council. It is an advisory committee to the Faculty Senate.

II. Membership

A. Composition

1. 1. The committee shall have one member elected by each of the academic units: College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Dental Medicine, School of Education, School of Engineering, Lovejoy Library, School of Nursing, and School of Pharmacy
   2. All members of the committee will be tenured and tenure-eligible faculty as defined by the SIUE Tenure Policy and Guidelines.

B. Term of Office

1. 1. Membership terms will be three years in length.
   2. Terms will be staggered (including when initially establishing the committee) so that one third of the committee will be elected each academic year.
   3. To establish the committee initially, three of the members will be chosen by lot to serve 3-year terms, three will be chosen by lot to serve 2-year terms, and two will be chosen by lot to serve 1-year terms. Selection by lot means selecting persons from a randomized membership list, starting at the beginning of the list.

C. Election of Members
The academic units are responsible for electing their representatives to the committee following the units' established procedures of selection. By February 1 of every year, the chair of the Faculty Salary Equity Committee shall notify the Dean of the unit that an election must be held to fulfill the unit's representation on the committee.

III. Chair

A. The committee shall elect annually at its last meeting of the spring semester its chair for the following academic year.

B. Notification of the election of the chair of the committee shall be provided to the chair of the Faculty Senate Welfare Council prior to the end of the spring term.

C. The duties and responsibilities of the chair will be determined by the members of the committee.

IV. Powers and Functions

Salary equity is an important contributor to faculty morale, faculty commitment to the university and students, and the university's ability to recruit and retain faculty members of high quality. Salary equity concerns include both external market comparisons with peer institutions and internal equity issues with regards to factors such as gender, race, and academic discipline. The committee shall be sensitive to recommendations of the Faculty Senate, with explicit attention to prior salary equity reports generated by the Faculty Senate.

The responsibilities of the committee include, but are not limited to, the following:

A. Regularly monitoring the progress of research and studies on faculty salary equity on campus.

B. Ensuring that the issue of faculty salary equity remains on the agenda of the university administration.

C. When deemed necessary, reviewing the methodology of salary equity studies approved by the Faculty Senate and ensuring that the current methodology continues to be appropriate.

D. Collaborating with the Office of Institutional Research, the University Planning and Budget Council, and other administrative entities as needed to ensure:

a. a database of internal and peer-institution salary information is maintained and kept current (i.e., within three years), and

b. equity studies are conducted at least every three years.

E. Monitoring the distribution of any available salary equity funds.

F. Initiating work on additional issues related to salary equity as deemed necessary by the Committee.

V. Reports

The Committee will report to the Faculty Senate Welfare Council at least once in the fall semester and once in the spring semester to communicate progress and take faculty feedback on continuing efforts. The committee may report more often by contacting the chair of the Welfare Council.

Approved by the Welfare Council on September 15, 2009. 
Approved by the Faculty Senate Executive Committee on September 24, 2009. 
Approved by the Chancellor October 19, 2009