THE PROBLEM:

When we lose a good teacher," said [University of Wisconsin System] Regent Roger Axtell, "it costs more to replace them. Wisconsin has become a target for its low salaries."

The solution:

Seven chancellors in the University of Wisconsin System will get pay raises after regents approved plans Friday to adjust salary ranges of top executives and recommended a new pay plan for other UW staff.

After an hour of debate and a brief student protest, the regents voted unanimously to adjust the pay scales for administrators and to forward a recommendation to increase pay 5% for other UW employees.

Let's see, that's administrators. Did professors, lab techs, computer operators, and lunch ladies get theirs?

A state audit in September found the system had approved more than $500,000 in salary increases for 20 top executive positions over the last three years, but they still remained below the average at other comparable institutions.

System employees, including faculty members, academic staff and university leaders, got raises of zero and 1% over the past two years.

However, the proposed 5% increases for UW staff would be higher than the national average wage increases for both private and public sector workers, according to statistics from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Proposals are easy. Implementation is hard.