Multiple faculty have reached out to UTSF regarding clarification about 2026 raises. This post is intended to clarify what we know and what we do not yet know about how MSU is implementing the UTSF-MSU agreement.
Please read this post in totality. It is long, but it is important. And feel free to forward this post to colleagues in administration positions.
What The 2026 Raise Process Should Be
The following is UTSF’s perspective.
Per the written Memorandum of Agreement between UTSF and MSU, and in conjunction with verbal representations made by MSU during the bargaining process, the 2026 raise process should be as follows:
(1) MSU will establish a 3.5% raise pool for the UTSF bargaining unit. This pool should be calculated as:
(Total of 9-month Base Salaries for Academic Year UTSF Faculty + Total of 12-month Base Salaries for Annual Year UTSF Faculty) * 0.035
It is important to note that this does not mean just the general fund allocation to UTSF faculty salaries. If a UTSF faculty salary is not exclusively funded through the general fund, MSU still has an obligation to provide the same raise pool for that total base salary – not just the general fund component.
But please also note that raises are only for base salaries. Any form of compensation beyond base salaries is not included when calculating the 3.5% raise pool. For example, summer funding from grants is not included in base salaries.
(2) Colleges will receive raise pools proportional to their UTSF faculty’s total base salaries. For example, if a college has a total base salary of $10 million, then the college will receive a raise pool of $350,000.
(3) Colleges will allocate raise pools to departments consistent with how they have always done in the past. For most colleges, this means that departments will get 3.5% raise pools proportional to their UTSF faculty’s total base salaries. However, there may be variation in how colleges allocate to departments. Whatever that variation is, it must not be a new process; it must be how the college has operated in the past.
(4) Any UTSF faculty with a performance evaluation of “meets expectations”/“satisfactory” or better is guaranteed a minimum 2.75% raise. For convenience, we will call this the ‘baseline distribution’.
a. Performance evaluations must be conducted consistent with how they have been conducted by your department and/or college in the past. The department and/or college cannot initiate a new process or change an established process for performance evaluations.
(5) Once all eligible faculty receive their baseline distribution, there is still money remaining from the 3.5% raise pool. For convenience, we will call the remaining money ‘additional distribution’. The additional distribution pool has the 0.75% not allocated during baseline distribution plus any funds remaining from faculty who did not receive the baseline distribution because their performance ratings fell below meets expectations/satisfactory.
Departments and deans have discretion on how they allocate the additional distribution pool. However, the additional distribution pool must be allocated amongst UTSF faculty: faculty who have performance evaluations below expectations, meet expectations, or exceed expectations. The allocations must be through the regular merit raise process and start with the October 2026 pay period. Importantly, the whole additional distribution pool must be allocated as raises to UTSF faculty – and only UTSF faculty.
It is important to note that UTSF strongly supports faculty receiving retention offers. That is why the UTSF-MSU agreement explicitly allows for such offers. However, the 3.5% raise pool is not intended to fund retention offers. Retention offers should be funded separately; it is up to the provost to provide such funds. The 3.5% raise pool is intended to compensate faculty based on the merit of their work at MSU during the relevant performance review period.
How MSU Is Actually Allocating 2026 Raises
Faculty have been contacting us regarding ways MSU is potentially violating the agreement for 2026 raise allocations. Please understand that we do not have the information needed to determine if MSU has violated the agreement, but we have requested clarifications on salary distributions from MSU administration. As of today, they have yet to provide the needed information. We are hopeful MSU will fulfill its legal obligation of providing UTSF information regarding how the agreement is implemented.
Here is what we know and what we need more information on:
(1) MSU has confirmed to us that they calculated the 3.5% raise pool consistent with the formula described at the beginning of this post. Please reach out to UTSF immediately if you have any contrary information on this matter.
(2) There is not supposed to be any ‘Dean’s Withhold’ this year. Dean’s Withhold is where the dean’s office retains up to 0.15 percentage points of the college’s total raise pool and uses those funds in a targeted way rather than proportional to departments’ total UTSF base salaries. Unfortunately, we have learned that MSU went back on their word and allowed a Dean’s Withhold this year of up to 0.15 percentage points from the 3.5 percentage points pool.
We believe a Dean’s Withhold is inconsistent with written and verbal assurances made by MSU during bargaining, and UTSF will seek legal advice on next steps.
Nonetheless, colleges that do initiate a Dean’s Withhold are limited to 0.15 percentage points per MSU’s own guidelines – meaning departments should still be receiving 3.35% raise pools proportional to their UTSF total base salaries.
If you are in a department who has not received the full 3.35% raise pool, please reach out to UTSF immediately. Understand that receiving the full 3.35% raise pool does not mean all individual faculty within the department will receive a 3.35% raise. But it does mean that the whole department must receive an aggregate 3.35% raise.
(3) We do not know if MSU has withheld other sources of funding from colleges and departments in lieu of the 3.5% raise pool. Per the UTSF-MSU agreement, UTSF faculty must receive the full 3.5% raise pool in aggregate, but departments and colleges may face budget shortfalls if MSU withholds other sources of funding. We have requested information from MSU to ascertain if they are withholding other sources of funding from colleges and departments. Please reach out to UTSF immediately if you have any information on this matter.
(4) We do not know if colleges and departments are actually following the same process for raise allocations as they have in the past (aside from the changes introduced by the agreement). We have requested information from MSU about the process each college is using and whether it differs from prior practice. Please reach out to UTSF immediately if you have any information on this matter.
We will reach out again when we have more information. If you have not joined already, help us fight for our colleagues by joining UTSF.