Dear Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV community,
The Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV is committed to being a great place to work and to providing an outstanding employee experience to our diverse and talented workforce. We continue to launch new initiatives designed to help recruit and retain top talent and to reward those whose dedication and service help advance our university.
Today, I am sharing several updates in this regard, which you may have heard about during this morning’s Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV Board of Trustees meeting.
Base salary increases and an increase to Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV’s minimum wage
As I have spent time on each of our three campuses over the past year, it became clear that we can do more to support our people at every level, especially those who work hard on-campus day in and day out to support our facilities and operations. Our people are our greatest asset, without whom it would not be possible for us to provide such a strong environment for learning and innovation.
I am pleased to announce that the new Fiscal Year 23 budget shared at today’s Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV Board of Trustees meeting includes an increase to Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV’s minimum wage to a starting rate of $15 per hour for eligible employees. Additionally, out-of-unit administrative and staff employees will be eligible for an increase to base salaries.
The base salary increases will come from a 3% discretionary pool for all eligible out-of-unit (employees who are not represented by a union) administrative and staff employees. Supervisors will determine increases for individual employees based on criteria from Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV Human Resources, including hiring date and performance history. 
For out-of-unit employees, the minimum wage increase will be completed by the end of this month, and the base salary increases will be completed by the end of October. For in-unit employees, these changes will be implemented as permitted by collective bargaining agreements. We are committed to bargaining in good faith with Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV’s employee unions to provide these benefits to unionized employees in a timely manner.
I am grateful to our leaders and team members in Human Resources and Budget and Finance who are working tirelessly to bring these pay increases to fruition for our thousands of employees who greatly deserve them. 
Announcing Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV’s winter break holiday schedule
In recognition of our employees’ tireless contributions to the success of our university, I am pleased to announce that the proposed winter break holiday schedule has been approved to encompass Wednesday, Dec. 21, through Monday, Jan. 2, 2023.
Reminder: Â鶹ÃÛÌÒAV Town Hall – Wednesday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m.
I encourage you to join me at our university-wide town hall for faculty and staff tomorrow, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. This event will be an opportunity for our leadership team to provide more details about these updates and to hear your thoughts and perspectives about issues important to you. The town hall will be held in person with a livestream option available for those who wish to participate virtually.
Thank you for everything you do for our great university.
Sincerely,
Rhea F. Law
President