IL - PAYROLL ERROR SHORTCHANGES 80 SIUC FACULTY By Steve Binder [Mon Aug 13 2001] CARBONDALE -- Southern Illinois University Carbondale officials have run off the second payroll snafu for teachers in the past five months, a mistake that this time shortchanged faculty payroll by about $20,000.

The first payroll error occurred in March, when most faculty received pay stubs with an extra months' salary included. It was an error blamed mostly on the rush to include raises retroactive to summer 2000 after the approval of a two-year contract between faculty and the university.

Nearly $100,000 was mistakenly included in the checks, money paid back through payroll reduction over the next two months.

This time, for pay stubs received at the end of July, about 80 faculty members were shortchanged by about one days' worth of pay each.

Historically, faculty members who teach during the summer are paid for 11/2 months' work in half-month installments. This year -- and it is unclear why -- payroll was calculated on a per-day basis instead of half-month increments, said Chancellor Walter Wendler.

"Apparently, the assumption was to cut it down to days, rather than two weeks is one-half of a month," Wendler said. "It's my understanding that different departments sign up faculty for summer work in different ways; this wasn't any fault of anyone in payroll, it was a matter of inconsistency. We're looking into a system now where I don't believe this will happen again."

Morteza Daneshdoost, president of the faculty union, said he didn't receive any complaints regarding the shortchanging.

Separate checks have been cut for the 80 summer teachers, Wendler said.

"We're making the assumption that an honest mistake was made, and most importantly, they (administrators) are correcting the mistake and communicating with us about it. That's the important thing," Daneshdoost said.

http://www.southernillinoisan.com/rednews/2001/08/14/build/local/LOC003.html

-- Anonymous, August 16, 2001