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This story appeared on Page A1 of The
Standard-Times on March 10, 2005
Lawmakers override pay raise veto
UMass employees will get retroactive hikes
By JOAO FERREIRA, Standard-Times staff writer
BOSTON -- Employees at UMass Dartmouth and other
state colleges and universities will get their
long-overdue retroactive raises after lawmakers
yesterday overrode a budget veto from Gov. Mitt
Romney.
Late last month, Gov. Romney vetoed nearly $30
million for the raises, saying the state couldn't
afford the extra spending.
But lawmakers in the House and Senate swiftly
overrode Gov. Romney's veto and approved the raises.
"I think it's a great way to start the session,"
said Rep. John F. Quinn, D-Dartmouth, whose district
includes the UMass Dartmouth campus "This is it,
once and for all, and Romney can't stop it," he
said.
Every Republican in the House and Senate split with
Gov. Romney and sided with Democrats to allow the
increases.
"I think they realize that paying for these teachers
is important," Rep. Quinn said of the Republicans
who broke ranks. "From time to time they do break
with him on things."
Now the raises -- which affect 13,000 higher
education employees -- will be funded retroactively
and for the remainder of the contract, Rep. Quinn
said. "Try as he might, this is it. They're getting
the money."
John Hoey, assistant to UMass Dartmouth Chancellor
Jean F. MacCormack, said the override allows the
employees and the university to continue their
mission without worrying about unfunded contracts.
"It's good news for the individual employees and
members of the faculty and it's also good news for
the University of Massachusetts," he said.
"It just removes a certain amount of tension from
people's lives," he added. "I think faculty and
staff at the university, they don't want to focus on
this type of thing. They want to focus on their
work."
In 2001, union representatives for the employees
negotiated pay increases to be phased in over three
years. But funding for the increases repeatedly fell
victim to politics, starting when former acting Gov.
Jane M. Swift vetoed the pay hikes, citing the
state's budget deficit.
Gov. Romney in 2003 approved a $34 million pay
increase that took effect last year.
But the retroactive increases, which dated back to
when the 2001 agreement was signed, were still being
sought.
"This is important because it's a contract," said
UMass Dartmouth economics professor Daniel
Georgianna, after Gov. Romney's veto last month.
"It's no different than a contract for repairing the
roof on the Statehouse," he said.
Mr. Georgianna, who is head of the faculty union at
UMass Dartmouth, was in meetings late yesterday and
could not be reached for comment after the override.
SouthCoast's sole Republican lawmaker, Rep. Susan
Williams Gifford, could not be reached for comment
yesterday.
Massachusetts Teachers Association President
Catherine A. Boudreau said yesterday's veto
demonstrates the Legislature's "commitment to fund
higher education contracts."
"The votes also demonstrate the Legislature's
recognition of the importance of higher education in
our state and, by contrast, highlight Governor
Romney's fiscal shortsightedness," she wrote in a
statement.
Despite yesterday's veto, Ms. Boudreau said 1,800
faculty and professional staff at community colleges
still failed to get their raises, which are
retroactive to 2002.
Standard-Times senior correspondent Steve Urbon and
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story appeared on Page A1 of The
Standard-Times on March 10, 2005 |
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