Media Resource Center - Rutgers AAUP-AFT

Rutgers AAUP-AFT, the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, and AAUP-BHSNJ are organizing together to win fair contracts, in solidarity with other unions—representing more than 15,000 Rutgers workers in all—whose previous contracts expired last summer. Our goal is to achieve a better Rutgers for everyone: our students and their families, staff, graduate workers, postdoctoral associates, clinicians, full-time and adjunct faculty, and communities surrounding our campuses.

What We Are Fighting For

Equal pay for equal work for adjunct faculty
Guaranteed funding and a living wage for graduate workers
A fair salary increase that keeps up with inflation
Job security for all faculty
One union for all Rutgers educators, clinicians, and researchers
Affordable housing for students, members, and our communities
Forgiveness for students’ overdue fees and fines
Control over course scheduling and teaching and research conditions
Affordable health insurance for all
Equity for Rutgers-Camden and Rutgers-Newark
Workload standards for medical clinical faculty

To see the unions’ contract proposals and the administration’s responses, see this page for Rutgers AAUP-AFT, this page for the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, and this page for AAUP-BHSNJ.

Who We Are

The three unions representing educators, researchers, and clinicians at Rutgers are working together toward a common set of demands and a single contract. Currently, Rutgers AAUP-AFT (American Association of University Professors-American Federation of Teachers) represents more than 5,000 full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral associates, and Educational Opportunity Fund counselors. The Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union (PTLFC-AAUP-AFT) represents some 2,700 Part-Time Lecturers. AAUP-BHSNJ (American Association of University Professors–Biomedical and Health Sciences of New Jersey) represents 1,300 health science faculty in RBHS facilities and schools.

Interviews and Contacts

We encourage the media to interview any union member they wish. We ask that you understand that individuals don’t speak for their union as a whole and may not have experience talking to the press. We will be glad to help if you want to arrange interviews with members not named on this page or in media statements: email Alan Maass at amaass@rutgersaaup.org, Molly Earner at mearner@rutgersaaup.org (for adjunct union-specific requests), or Anthony Campisi at anthony@ceislermedia.com (for biomedical faculty-specific requests).

Photos and Graphics Available for Publication

Click here for a folder containing photos, videos, and graphics that are available for use by the media. Photos must be credited to the person named in the file name. Graphics should be credited to Rutgers AAUP-AFT.

Facts about the Contract Campaign

Contracts for all of the dozen unions currently without one expired last summer (almost all expired on June 30). Bargaining for new agreements began in May, and the unions presented almost all of their proposals by mid-summer. As of the end of March, the Rutgers administration had still not responded to some proposals made 10 months earlier. Others were rejected without explanation. Some progress was made on smaller issues in early April, but the unions consider the counter-offers they have received inadequate on most substantial issues. See the web pages linked above for information on the current status of bargaining.

Rutgers AAUP-AFT and the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union began votes on strike authorization on February 28. Some 94 percent of members who cast a ballot voted yes to empower union leadership bodies to call a strike if necessary to achieve the unions’ goals for a fair contract. Turnout for the vote was 80 percent. AAUP-BHSNJ launched a strike authorization vote on March 9—95 percent of members who voted chose to authorize strike action.

This strike is the first by Rutgers educators in the university’s 257-year history. It would also be the first strike to involve tenured and tenure-track faculty at a Big Ten university. There is no statute outlawing public-sector strikes in New Jersey. Click here to read our answers to frequently asked questions about a possible strike at Rutgers.

Recent Media Statements

Click here for a full archive of union media statements.

Other Union Resources

Rutgers AAUP-AFT

Bargaining Status at a Glance (includes a summary of union proposals and management responses)
2023 Strike FAQ (answers to members’ frequently asked questions)
Member News (archive of union updates and messages to members

Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union

C2022/2023 Contract Campaign (includes a summary of union proposals and management responses)
Member News (archive of bargaining updates and other official union messages)

Rutgers Biomedical and Health Science Faculty Union (AAUP-BHSNJ)