March 17, 2010. 12:52 P.M. — Florida Gulf Coast University’s board of trustees and the faculty union will have their disagreements over salaries, bargaining rights and benefits heard by a magistrate.

The union announced earlier today that it was at an impasse with FGCU officials after more than a year of bargaining over the 2009 fall contract.

“The problem is we are a relatively new University whose faculty work on multi-year contracts and without the attraction of tenure,” said. Madelyn Isaacs, president of the FGCU chapter of United Faculty of Florida. “Now additionally, faculty lose money every year they remain at FGCU when the administration hires new and less experienced faculty at salaries at or higher than the salaries of faculty who have been here for years and have more experience and accomplishments to their credit. The University isn’t rewarding years of teaching, service, and scholarship. Our proposals sought to stem the growing inequity in compensation, which currently sends a message to senior faculty that they need to leave FGCU to be valued. This simply isn’t a good way to build and retain a quality faculty.”

The impasse will be reviewed by Florida Public Employees Relations Commission. The commission’s magistrate will recommend resolutions to the impasse. Those recommendations will go to the board of trustees and faculty for ratification. The magistrate’s impasse hearing will be held at FGCU, the union said.