Instructors at Ferris State University held a sit-in Wednesday outside the office of the president.
Roughly 140 professors gathered outside the office of President David Eisler, protesting what they say is the university’s unwillingness to budge on a salary increase.
Charles Bacon is with the Ferris Faculty Association, which represents tenured faculty. He said association members overwhelmingly voted to reject the University’s latest offer.
“By a direct vote, 90% said no deal and 10% said they’d take the deal.”
Bacon said paying attorneys to keep fighting the faculty doesn’t make sense.
“With that money, they could have settled our contracts. This is why it’s crazy. At this point we’re trying to say ‘Eisler this is a problem’ but we’re also sending the message to the Board of Trustees saying this is not working.”
The University says it is currently offering 2.25%, but Bacon said that is only by moving money around from the Supplemental Market Adjustment fund - which helps compensate professors who are underpaid based on market averages.
He said it’s like taking a wallet from one pocket and putting it in another and saying you got a raise.
Bacon said, in real terms, the University has never really budged from its first offer of 1.5%.
In a written statement a spokesperson for the University said they "look forward to returning to the bargaining table."