Takeaway: Join us at the first chapter meetings of the semester and make your voice heard:
- Newark: Wednesday, January 26, 2:45 p.m. Click here to RSVP
- New Brunswick: Friday, February 4, 10 a.m. Click here to RSVP
Dear colleague,
The semester is underway, and so are our efforts to get the university that we, our students, and our communities deserve. We have a lot to do this semester, and we hope you’ll join us at your chapter meetings in Newark and New Brunswick (Camden already had their meeting) to discuss how we can prepare. Click here to RSVP for the Newark chapter meeting on Wednesday, January 26, at 2:45 p.m. Click here to RSVP for the New Brunswick chapter meeting on Friday, February 4, 10 a.m.
We want to make sure you know about some union achievements despite the recent pandemic surge:
- Library faculty and staff came together to demand a voice in the selection of a new University Librarian. The nearly three dozen people who signed a letter to Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Prabhas Moghe not only got more faculty and staff representation on the search committee, but a library administrator known for treating them with disrespect was removed!
- We’re making progress in our fight for pay equity. According to our faculty experts who analyzed the outcomes of the first round of appeals of the initial 103 decisions, campus chancellors increased total salary adjustments by nearly 40 percent. Some of our colleagues on all three campuses received equity raises in the tens of thousands of dollars. Camden faculty, who suffered the worst in the first decisions, nearly doubled their pay equity awards. Meanwhile, we believe we are close to an agreement with the administration on a faculty-led appeals process going forward. None of this would have happened if we didn’t speak out as a union—especially in Camden, where our faculty held Chancellor Antonio Tillis and his leadership team accountable and voted no confidence in him. We have a lot to fight for before we win equity throughout the Rutgers system, but we’re further along today thanks to last fall’s organizing and protests.
- Several of our colleagues spent the break planning a campaign to demand equitable funding and respect for the perennially neglected Camden campus. We encourage all of you to look at the slide deck they developed for the first day of classes, spread the word about the unfair treatment of our Camden campus, and consider whether their presentation can be adapted for demands in Newark and New Brunswick.
Organizing gets the goods. A lesson to remember as we head into our contract campaign!
In solidarity,
Becky and Todd
Rebecca Givan, President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
Todd Wolfson, General Vice President, Rutgers AAUP-AFT
PS, we’re passing on a message from the AFT-New Jersey: Are you receiving Educator Express, the weekly AFTNJ e-newsletter? Sign up for it today by sending your preferred email address to: cjunior@aftnj.org.