The University of Santo Tomas (UST) has released P27.8 million in long-delayed salary upgrades and medical fund support for its faculty, following a breakthrough agreement with the UST Faculty Union (USTFU) on the long-disputed 2021 to 2026 collective bargaining agreement (CBA).

On 20 May, UST disbursed P21.8 million in across-the-board salary adjustments. Another P6 million was allocated to replenish the union’s hospitalization package. The release follows the faculty’s legally mandated 70 percent share of tuition increases from Academic Year 2020 to 2021.

“The P21.8 million was released today at 10 a.m. The P6 million is set aside to replenish the medical benefits after ratification (of the collective bargaining agreement),” USTFU President Emerito Gonzales said.

The university stated that the distribution of the P27.8 million would range from P32,666 for an Instructor 1 with a 21-unit load to P95,677 for a Professor 5 with the same teaching load.

While this marks a major breakthrough, UST still has P219.3 million in unpaid tuition hike shares covering three academic years. UST disclosed in an April 10 statement that the pending amount includes P51.4 million from AY 2021 to 2022, P63.2 million from AY 2022 to 2023, and P104.6 million from AY 2023 to 2024. The university and union have yet to finalize the details of its distribution.

The agreement came after the fourth conciliation and mediation conference under the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) on 24 April. That session settled three key economic issues and prompted the union to postpone its planned strike vote on 15 May to give way to the developing agreement.

“This settlement marks a significant step forward for both parties, reflecting a shared commitment to dialogue, mutual respect, and constructive resolution. More importantly, it reinforces our unity and shared purpose of advancing the interests of the academic community,” UST said in a statement posted on its official Facebook page.

“As we move ahead, both UST and USTFU remain guided by our common goal — to uphold academic excellence and serve the best interest of our students.”

The NCMB also proposed a compromise on the union’s hospitalization fund. Up to P10 million in expenses would receive full coverage, while any excess would follow a tiered reimbursement scheme.

Other resolved concerns in the new CBA include the timeline for releasing tuition shares, a fund for faculty rank upgrades, and expanded vacation leave for non-teaching staff. Faculty members under the National Service Training Program (NSTP) will now receive an additional P2,000 per term. The interest rate for emergency loans will be lowered from 6 percent to 4 percent.

Talks on the proposed 11th and 12th-month pay will resume in August during the economic benefits renegotiation. A separate P10.5 million salary restructuring fund for Senior High School teachers was excluded from this round of talks to avoid delays but will also be discussed in future sessions.

The 20 May release of the initial P27.8 million stands as the clearest sign of progress since negotiations began in early 2023. Faculty members, many of whom had waited years for the release of their rightful share, now look forward to further gains under the finalized agreement.