• 2025 DSI Distribution Report

    New Paltz DSI 2025 Distribution Report

    On the December 24 payroll, some 442 of our bargaining unit members received an increase to their base salary, along with a retroactive payment of that increase to either July 1 (calendar year employees), August 22 (for adjuncts) or September 1 (academic year employees). These increases came from a provision in our statewide Agreement, which requires the Employer to distribute .5% of the total UUP payroll to our members via Discretionary Salary Increases (DSI). Please note that the discretion involved in this distribution is solely that of the Administration.

    The pool of money available for each type of increase is stipulated at .5% of the total UUP salary pool. The actual salary increases distributed in the 2025 round of DSI was $275,767.00, in amounts ranging from $100 to $1,563.

    Attached is the list of DSI recipients (sorted by department and last name) and the amounts distributed by the Administration in 2025 in PDF format.

  • Special Chapter Elections 2026

    You should have received in the mail recently a nomination form for Special Elections this Spring. Sorry for the surprise–statewide got ahead of us a bit on this!

    Here’s what’s going on:
    Chapter President Beth Wilson will be retiring from SUNY at the end of the current academic year. She has submitted her resignation from the position of Chapter President effective May 31, so there will be a vacancy in this important position for the remaining year of the current term. 

    At its December meeting, members of our chapter Executive Committee discussed the options to fill this vacancy–which include a simple majority vote by the EC to appoint someone to the post. It was the consensus of our leadership that in the interests of greater transparency and union democracy, it would be better to run a full Chapter election, allowing all members to vote. And so this is why nomination forms were sent out this week by statewide–we are now in the nomination period, which closes on March 4 (when all nominations are due to arrive in the statewide UUP office).

    Academic members will only see a spot on the form to nominate for the position of President; Professional members will also have an opportunity to nominate for Vice President of Professionals, another position which is currently vacant. All nominations received will be posted to the Members Only portal at www.uupinfo.org by March 6; voting will take place via snail mail ballots between March 16 and April 20. Ballots will be counted by the statewide Constitution and Governance Committee, and the winners will be announced on or about April 22. 
  • Contract Negotiations Start Feb 4

    Contract Negotiations Start Feb 4
    Dear Colleagues, 

    We have a start date! UUP and the State will meet on February 4 to begin negotiating a new contract.  

    Our current Agreement expires on July 1, 2026. We want an on-time contract for the first time in recent memory.  No delayed raises.  No interrupted programs.  No uncertainty.  We want an on-time contract that meets the needs of our members.   

    In recent rounds, the State has not been willing to begin negotiations until the contract has expired or is about to expire.  Getting the State to the table early in this round is an important first step, made possible because of the momentum created by member involvement in our bargaining preparations. We’ve been moving rapidly to prepare without sacrificing the member-driven engagement and thorough preparation, that characterizes our union’s approach to bargaining.  As you know we’ve hosted town hall negotiations visits, an extensive negotiation survey where more than 13,000 members identified bargaining priorities, weekly “Know Your Contract” workshops, and much more.  Our Negotiations Team has been meeting regularly since April to develop a focused, ambitious, transformational package of bargaining proposals that address the issues raised by our members. 

    Now we are ready to bargain.  To achieve the contract we deserve, however, members must stay informed and involved at every step.  Can we count on you to take the following immediate steps? 

    Register for a virtual town hall on Feb 3 at noon to kick-off our contract negotiations and show support for your bargaining team.

    Log in to the UUP Members’ Only page to see our first Negotiations Bulletin. We’ll post regular, detailed reports on progress at the table as well as actions members can take. Log in yourself, but better yet, talk to your colleagues to make sure everyone has login information. If you are having trouble signing in, please call 518-640-6624.

    Request a “Ready to Bargain” poster for your door or window to show support for our union.Plan to wear UUP or red clothing on 2/4. Take a photo and post to social media with the hashtag #UUPContract. Please tag @uupinfo when posting.

    Become a Rapid Responder so that we can contact you about important updates, announcements, or actions. 

    We’re excited to get to the table to fight for the workplace provisions that our members want and deserve.  Thanks for taking these first steps in our contract campaign; expect more information and contract actions to come! 

    In Solidarity, 
    Fred Kowal, UUP President
    Bret Benjamin, UUP Chief Contract Negotiator

Calendar

March 17, 2026
  • Labor Management (Closed Meeting)

    March 17, 2026  2:00 pm3:00 pm

    See more details

March 24, 2026
  • Professionals Workshop: Promotions & Salary Increases

    March 24, 2026  12:00 pm1:00 pm
    Zoom

    Presented by our our Professionals Council and Labor Relations Specialist Bill Capowski. 

    On Promotions and Salary Increases
    RSVP NOW! 
     
    This workshop will review the contractual provisions for Professionals to request promotions and salary increases, with discussion of some actual member experiences with these processes. What do SL-levels signify? How can I improve my chances for successfully advancing my professional career?

    See more details

  • Executive Committee Meeting (via Zoom)

    March 24, 2026  1:30 pm3:00 pm

    Email newpaltz@uupmail.org to request to attend the meeting.

    See more details

April 14, 2026
  • Labor Management Meeting

    April 14, 2026  2:00 pm3:30 pm
    Zoom

    See more details

  • General Chapter Meeting!

    April 14, 2026  3:30 pm5:00 pm
    College Terrace

    See more details

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