United Staff-UNM's bargaining unit received a 5 percent raise as part of a ratified contract.
The raises will go into effect on June 26, though the term of the one-year agreement does not start until June 30.
US-UNM is a union that represents about 925 educational support employees at UNM. Although only 33 union members voted for the proposed contract, the entire bargaining unit will be affected.
A different negotiator from past years represented each side at the table.
"Having a different negotiator changed the atmosphere," said Donna Swanson-Hurtado, the union's chief negotiator.
She said she had seen the union at UNM struggling and on rough ground with the University. She was asked to help because of her position as president of the TVI Employees Federation.
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"Instead of all the power, decision making and influence on the University's part, it shifted to where it should be," she said.
Swanson-Hurtado expected the negotiations for the contract to be difficult and lengthy, but afterward she said she saw the experience as positive for both sides.
"I have every confidence that things will progress over there in terms of communication between both parties," Swanson-Hurtado said.
Negotiators on the University side did not agree to all the union's requests. UNM will not pay for certain portions of health insurance costs for members of the bargaining unit who make between $25,000 and $35,000 per year. UNM does pick up the tab for these portions for unit members in a lower income bracket.
Secondary to health insurance costs, union President Lucille Farrington said the union is seeking a means to track job titles to tackle equity. She said different employees are sometimes doing the same job, but with different titles, and might not be receiving equal pay. It is an issue that did not come to the table but is a work in progress, she said.
An agreement within the union's proposal stated employees in the bargaining unit could dispute any comments made in their personnel file.
If an employee's supervisor had a negative comment concerning performance, the employee could create a dialogue for potential employers by refuting or explaining any comment made, Farrington said. Those comments are recorded in the file and are stored at the Human Resources Department at UNM.
Because the union is fairly new, the contract will be re-visited each year. When the contract becomes more permanent year to year, Farrington said only monetary items will be reworked.
She said the union has moved on from dwelling on past bad events, and the negotiations ended with a decision to turn things around, working to benefit the University and its employees.
"We had much better communication in an atmosphere of respect at the table, and I think there will be much better relations in the future," Farrington said.
