Nearly 550 faculty members at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are set to receive pay raises this month as part of efforts to attract and retain faculty in high-demand fields of study.
State lawmakers provided $27 million annually and created an annual appropriation to the UW system in the current state budget for the compensation. Over 2,300 faculty members across the state’s 13 public universities are receiving raises through the funding, said Mark Pitsch, a UW system spokesperson.
The UW system’s Board of Regents reviewed a plan in October for how to allocate the funds, and a legislative committee later approved the board’s proposal.
The money aimed to “address workforce needs that will benefit communities across Wisconsin,” Pitsch said.
Roughly 68% of faculty across the Universities of Wisconsin earned less than the median salary of their peers in recent years, according to the Board of Regents’ meeting materials. Jay Rothman, who led the Universities of Wisconsin until he was fired last month, cited this issue as the UW system sought more money in the current state budget.