(Ypsilanti, MI)  --  Professors at Eastern Michigan University are threatening to strike unless a new collective bargaining contract is reached before the current deal expires.  The university's chapter of the American Association of University Professors voted this week to authorize the walkout as the negotiations continue.  The sides continue talking as a midnight Tuesday deadline approaches.  Classes are back in session September 8th.  The AAUP says that the administration's three-year offer would increase health care costs and result in an overall pay reduction.  EMU has proposed a three-percent pay increase to be phased in, with an additional raise for professors with 10-years of tenure.  EMU announced last spring that it was freezing in-state tuition this year. 

-Metro Source