SIU Carbondale announces $1.2 million in salary increases for 190 faculty members

FOX23 News at 9 p.m.

CARBONDALE, Ill. (KBSI) – Southern Illinois University Carbondale is investing $1.2 million to increase salaries for 190 faculty members as part of an effort to address pay disparities among university employees.

The university announced Tuesday, Nov. 10, that it reached an agreement with the SIUC Faculty Association following an independent compensation study examining faculty salaries.

The agreement, finalized Friday, Nov. 6, provides additional pay increases for 96 professors and 94 associate professors.

The funding is intended to address salary compression, which occurs when employees with different levels of experience, seniority or responsibilities receive similar pay.

According to university officials, the additional compensation fulfills a commitment made in the 2024-2028 collective bargaining agreement between SIU Carbondale and the Faculty Association.

That agreement required the university and faculty representatives to negotiate how $1.2 million would be distributed after an independent compensation study was completed.

The study was finalized in 2025, leading to $1.9 million in salary adjustments for 986 university employees who were not represented by collective bargaining agreements.

Those findings also provided the basis for negotiations with the Faculty Association, which concluded with a signed memorandum of understanding Nov. 6.

The latest $1.2 million investment is separate from annual salary increases previously negotiated for Faculty Association members.

Under the existing agreement, faculty members are scheduled to receive cumulative negotiated annual increases totaling 8.5% from fiscal year 2025 through fiscal year 2028.

The university is also allocating an additional $210,000 to address salary compression for 48 full-time continuing faculty members who are not on the tenure track and are represented by the Non-Tenure Track Faculty Association.

That funding will cover the remainder of fiscal year 2027.

SIU Carbondale Chancellor Austin A. Lane said the agreement reflects the university’s commitment to improving faculty compensation.

“This agreement represents another important step in supporting the faculty who carry out SIU Carbondale’s teaching, research and service mission,” Lane said. “We committed in our agreement with the Faculty Association to address salary compression, and we are pleased to follow through on that commitment.”

The salary adjustments are part of the university’s broader effort to improve compensation and address pay disparities among faculty and staff.

SIU Carbondale launched its Compensation 2030 initiative to evaluate employee salaries, compare compensation with similar institutions and develop a more competitive and equitable pay structure.

University officials have identified salary compression, inflation and previous years without wage increases as factors contributing to compensation challenges.

The university has not announced the individual salary increases faculty members will receive under the latest agreement.