As inflation soars, Penn State will roll out general salary increases

Editor’s note: This story has been updated following action at Friday’s board of trustees meeting.

Most Penn State faculty and staff will likely receive a raise this year after university trustees recommended across-the-board pay bumps.

Penn State trustees voted 26-6 on Friday to approve a proposal that would create a 2.5% general salary increase for university employees. The pay bump, retroactive to July 1, will take effect beginning with employees’ August paychecks.

Friday’s action item paired salary increases with the university’s next tuition schedule and fee rates. Barry Fenchak, an alumni-elected trustee, voted against the motion but noted he would’ve supported pay raises if they were separated from tuition hikes, which he opposed.

“I will not be in favor of this tuition increase,” Fenchak said before the board’s roll call vote. “Unfortunately, that means I also will be voting against the salary increase, which I hate to do. But, they are coupled together.”

Self-supporting units, including Intercollegiate Athletics, Penn State Health and Auxiliary and Business Services, will fund their own salary increases for employees. Those departments are encouraged to use pay rates similar to those proposed by the board, Penn State said.

The university’s full board met at Penn State’s York campus on Friday to vote on the proposed raises. The trustees’ Committee on Finance, Business and Capital Planning voted on Thursday to recommend the wage increases.

“We are so thankful for the hard work and dedication of our employees, as everything we do as a University relies on their skills and expertise,” Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi said in a statement on Thursday. “It is imperative that Penn State remains financially competitive for top talent, both in terms of retaining our current employees and attracting new ones. Even with the budget constraints we are facing, we want to support our employees by providing a salary increase for the greatest number of employees as resources would allow.”

During Thursday’s committee meeting, some university employees called for larger pay increases that would further counter rising inflation rates, which near 9%.

“We need a cost of living adjustment that keeps up with inflation,” said media studies professor Michelle Rodino-Colocino. “Otherwise, that 2.5% pay raise is actually a large pay cut.”

Penn State’s salary increase comes as trustees approved a 5% tuition hike for in-state undergraduate students and a 6% tuition bump for out-of-state/graduate students for the 2022-23 academic year. The tuition hikes, packaged as part of the university’s next operating budget, raise in-state students’ tuition rates for the second straight year.