A long awaited ruling by an independent fact finder was released today. The fact finder concluded that the CSU had the resources and the responsibility to pay for a previously negotiated equity pay raises for CSU faculty.

And the Chancellor’s response: We “reject the report’s recommendations and maintain the CSUs final offer.” Vice Chancellor Gail Brooks (who, according to the Sacramento Bee made more than $255,000 in 2010, almost $7,000 more than she made in 2008–that’s about a 3% increase in a period when faculty got NO INCREASE) argues that this pay increase would target a “small fraction of one employee group” rather than extend pay raises to all CSU employees.

There is no end to the ironies of Ms. Brooks argument:

1. The current CSU proposal to faculty is a ZERO pay raise this year and contract reopeners to “renegotiate” pay and benefits in the last two years of the contract. That is code for pay and benefit CUTS. So where are the pay raises that they want for “everyone?” Not in their current proposal to faculty.
2. The letter from Ms. Brooks states that the CSU is proposing a 3% increase in the compensation pool to the legislature for fiscal year 2012-2013. This does not pass the “laugh test.” Given that the legislature is slowly slicing and dicing the CSU how can she seriously propose that the legislature will deliver a 3% pay raise to CSU employees.
3. They are rejecting this previously-negotiated modest pay increase to faculty at the same time that they have approved pay increases for several campus presidents on the order of 25%.
4. They are rejecting this increase at the same time that the Chancellor is lobbying the Board of Trustees for increases for all other campus presidents.

The CSU’s position would be laughable if it was not so cynical and so perverse.