TL;DR
At the start of the session, management sent back counters on the following articles: Article 26, Termination for Cause; and Article 23, TA/GA Grievance Procedure. Management again struck “fellows” from the protections available to other graduate workers. The union held firm on the inclusion of fellows under grad articles and signaled that this would require further discussion. Management’s approach to making counterproposals is to strike language wholesale from the union proposals, which offers no insight into their reasoning and makes responding difficult. The bargaining team feels frustrated by the lack of progress on these articles as well as the overall pace of bargaining.
Highlights from the Session
Management Continued to Make Minimal Movement on Graduate Worker Protections
In last week’s bargaining session, management had struck nearly all the union’s proposed language, including basic notice requirements when academic issues could threaten a graduate worker’s TA or GA employment. In this new counter, management continued to maintain their position, excluding fellows from the article, stating that they are not employees, but students. There was a back-and-forth discussion regarding the boundaries between academic standing and employment standing.
Rutgers AAUP-AFT President Becky Givan pointed out that the purpose of this article is to protect graduate workers from employment-status issues that arise during a graduate program. The union is concerned about maintaining and improving protections for graduate students.
The Union’s Article 23A proposal seeks basic procedural protections when academic decisions threaten a graduate worker’s employment, including adequate notice and a meaningful opportunity to address the problem.
Management continued to strike nearly all of the union’s proposed language. Management argued that these matters are governed by academic policy and that the union proposal comes too close to regulating academic decisions through the contract.
The lack of movement from management on these articles is a source of significant frustration. At the end of the session, the union reiterated that inclusion of fellows under the contract is a key concern for us and this will be a topic for further discussion in future negotiations.
Article 26: Termination for Cause
Management read a statement in which they made it clear that their response to Article 26 is partially a response to the union’s proposals in Article 2 (Academic Freedom), stating that they spent a lot of time considering the relationship between Academic Freedom and conduct. They insisted that the Article 26 counter should not be read in isolation, but instead should be read alongside the university’s most recent counter on Article 2.
A representative from management stated that termination for cause is “not a provision we use lightly” and that it is a “last resort.”
The union made it clear that we are fighting for broader use of this article to extend to anyone who has a term appointment and is being terminated. This article should be uniform across legacy Rutgers and BHSNJ units. We also want to extend this to NTT faculty with presumptively renewable contracts who are not renewed at the end of their contract, so that NTT faculty have improved job security.
In response, management stated that they believe non-renewals are different from terminations for cause, and that we need to get on the same page regarding to whom this article applies. There was some discussion about whether to include language on notice of non-renewal in this article. The union had made proposals on Articles 26 and 27 in tandem, but management did not send back a proposal that addressed both articles. Instead, management clarified that they specifically were not countering on Article 27 and this should be read separately.
BHSNJ members and leaders expressed frustration at still being referred to as legacy UMDNJ rather than acknowledging the merger with Rutgers in 2012, and that they are considered second-class citizens. BHSNJ members need the same protections as other faculty members when it comes to terminations and tenure, yet management continues to exclude BHSNJ members from this language.
Next Steps
Management plans to present information on University finances at the next session on August 20. The union will prepare counters for Articles 23 and 26. We urge members to continue to follow along in our Contract Campaign Resource Center, and talk to fellow colleagues about getting involved with your union as we prepare for the fall semester.
Other Upcoming Events
Click here for a full calendar: https://rutgersaaup.org/events/
Our Bargaining Team
| Austin | Rooney | Camden | Philosophy & Religion |
| Beth | Adubato | Newark | School of Criminal Justice |
| Bryan | Sacks | Camden | Philosophy & Religion |
| David | Letwin | College Ave-NB | Rutgers Arts Online |
| Howie | Swerdloff | Cook-NB | Labor Studies & Employee Relations |
| Boris | Paskhover | Newark | Otolaryngology (NJMS) |
| Catherine | Monteleone | RWJMS-NB | Medicine |
| Claire | O’Connell | Busch-Nb | School Of Health Professions |
| Cynthia | Sutton | RSDM-Newark | RSDM Diagnostic |
| Jeff | Levine | College Ave-NB | Family Medicine (RWJ) |
| Josh | Bucher | College Ave-NB | Emergency Medicine (RWJ) |
| Kathleen | Beebe | Newark | Orthopaedics (NJMS) |
| Melissa | Rogers | Newark | Microbiology (NJMS) |
| Pankaj | Agarwalla | Newark | Neurosurgery (NJMS) |
| Rula | Btoush | Newark | School of Nursing |
| Stephan | Schwander | NB Piscataway | SPH |
| Tessa | Bergsbaken | Newark | Immunity & Inflammation (NJMS) |
| LaToya | Gibbons | Camden | Enrollment & Student Success |
| Miguel | Rodriguez | College Ave-NB | School of Arts and Sciences |
| Adrian | Liu | College Ave-NB | Philosophy |
| Alexander | Steiner | RCI | Radiation Oncology |
| Annika | Barber | Busch-NB | Microbiology |
| Becky | Givan | Cook-NB | Labor Studies & Employee Relations |
| Britt | Paris | College Ave-NB | Library & Information Science |
| Bryan | Oller | Newark | Physics |
| Carlos | Decena | Livingston-NB | Latino & Hispanic Caribbean St |
| Chidera | Ntiwunka-Ifeanyi | Busch-NB | Biomedical Engineering |
| Emily | Marker | Camden | History |
| Ian | Oiler | Newark | Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine/Earth and Environmental Sciences |
| Kathy | Lopez | Camden | Public Policy |
| Kyle | Riismandel | Newark | History |
| Lee | Carpenter | Camden | Law School |
| Lily | Todorinova | Douglass-NB | New Brunswick Library |
| Paul | O’Keefe | Livingston-NB | Geography |
| Season | Qiu | Newark | Molecular And Behavioral Neuroscience |
| Tara | Matise | Busch-NB | Genetics |
| Heather | Pierce | College Ave-NB | Political Science |
| Luis | Soto | Livingston-NB | Criminal Justice |