Dear colleague,
Last week, you should have received an email from President Holloway announcing the findings and recommendations of the Future of Work Task Force he appointed a year ago. We welcome many of the recommendations from the Task Force as limited but useful ways—particularly for our staff colleagues, who have pressed for continued flexibility and telecommuting options—to adapt our work and workplace to the new realities that came in the wake of the pandemic.
But much more needs to be done before staff, grad workers, and faculty are treated with the consideration and respect we deserve. Our current contract expires in just a few days. In bargaining for our next one, we are proposing strong, enforceable contract provisions about these issues, from support for caregivers, to challenging CourseAtlas/Infosilem, to transportation and telecommuting policies that acknowledge the current health risks and climate crisis.
We need you to help us achieve a strong contract. We want to know your ideas for organizing, and we hope you’ll talk to your colleagues and build support for the demands we’re making. If you want to get involved in our contract campaign, click here and fill out the form. Find out what we’re putting forward in bargaining by reading a summary of our opening proposals and the contract language we’re proposing. Keep up to date about what’s happening in bargaining by reading updates from each session.
Unfortunately, the administration put NO effort into real collaboration with the Coalition of Rutgers Unions when they formed the Future of Work Task Force. We took this as a sign of disrespect for the over 15,000 unionized employees who do much of the work at our university—and our coalition decided unanimously not to accept the separate and limited advisory role we were offered.
Still, some of the task force’s recommendations are a direct result of our members’ advocacy. For example, the administration plans to launch a caregiver support program on September 1. This proposal was brought to the administration nearly a year ago by the Rutgers-Newark Faculty Parent Task Force, and our union has been working since then to persuade the administration to adopt it. The administration didn’t acknowledge the members of that task force, but we will: thank you to Patricia Akhimie, Catherine Clepper, Takashi Amano, Anastasia Bailey, Naomi Jackson, Courtney Sobers, Kristina Keating, and Elena Lahr-Vivaz for your efforts!
We hope you’re enjoying your summer break. Rest up—we have work ahead of us in the fall to win a strong contract! Sign up here to get involved in the campaign.
In solidarity,
Becky and Todd
Rebecca Givan, President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
Todd Wolfson, General Vice President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
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