Shelton: Pay Raises, More Furloughs Unlikely This Year

President Robert N. Shelton urged members of the Faculty Senate on Monday to ignore rumors about the scale of future University budget cuts from the state, noting that although a cut is expected, the size is still unknown. He also answered senators' questions about the potential for employee furloughs in 2011 and the likelihood of salary increases.

"We don't really have any news – concrete news – about what the FY12 budget is going to look like," Shelton said. "We hear lots of rumors. I urge you to ignore the rumors. The rumors can go anywhere from zero to infinity. We obviously prefer the zero end; we know we're not going to get that. We also know we're not going to get the infinity end."

"In the spirit of the rumor mill" about the budget and the anxiety it has caused, Sen. John Willerton, an associate professor of political science, asked if employees should anticipate more furlough requirements in the second half of this academic year.

UA employees making more than $40,000 a year already are required to take between one and three unpaid days off, depending on their pay, in fiscal year 2011, which ends June 30.  read more »