Dear colleague,
Our picket lines grew stronger and longer yesterday, thanks not only to our members but the growing support we have from our students and communities. Today can be even bigger and better! Join us on the line; you can sign up for picket shifts at these links—or just come out to the main picket locations listed below:
- New Brunswick – Sign up for picket shifts
- Newark – Sign up for picket shifts
- Camden – Sign up for picket shifts
We are making serious progress on our economic demands, though we still have work to do. Governor Murphy’s invitation to hold bargaining in his office in Trenton has clearly helped force the administration to drop its resistance to some core proposals, and we thank him for it.
Unfortunately, the Rutgers administration is still resisting many of our non-economic demands, which embody critical values for us. We won’t stop fighting for these, because our struggle has always been about more than wages—it is about our values of solidarity, community, and lifting up the most vulnerable.
We want not only a living wage but job security and dignity for vulnerable members. We’ve centered proposals for equity, inclusion, and racial justice at Rutgers and in our cities. We need the university administration to agree to forgiveness of outstanding fees and fines of current and former students, greater funding for diversity initiatives, and a university commitment to affordable housing for students and our communities.
Anyone who came out yesterday saw the excitement and passion that our students and community members contributed. They know that our fight is their fight, too. We urge you to talk to your students about our vision and our proposals. President Holloway has repeatedly misinformed the Rutgers community about our strike, and we need to set the record straight.
The administration’s attempts to divide us have failed. Together, we have the power to transform our university and make a better Rutgers for ALL. If we stay strong on the picket lines today and in the days to come, WE WILL WIN.
In solidarity,
Rutgers AAUP-AFT, Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, and AAUP-BHSNJ
Picket Lines and Locations
New Brunswick – Sign up for picket shifts
- College Avenue: 43 College Ave., outside Scott Hall (smaller pickets may be set up in front of Winants, Academic Building, and SCI)
- Cook/Douglass: corner of George Street and Chapel Drive/Nichol Road
- Livingston: Livingston Student Center, 84 Joyce Kilmer Ave., Piscataway
- Busch: lawn side of Weeks Hall of Engineering, 500 Bartholomew Rd., Piscataway
Newark – Sign up for picket shifts
- Plaza in front of Robeson Campus Center, 350 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
- Plaza outside Law School, between University Avenue and Washington Street
Camden – Sign up for picket shifts
- Outside Campus Center
Reminders
- If you experience any instance of retaliation or threats for participating in the strike or surveillance by anyone associated with Rutgers, please report it immediately by filling out this form (the contents of all reports will remain confidential). We will vigilantly defend everyone our unions represent.
- Our unions have established a merged strike fund, named the Rutgers Strike & Solidarity Fund, with the goal of supporting members in the event of a strike. We hope those of you who can best afford to give will do so generously to support your colleagues. Click here to donate, and click here for an FAQ about the fund (see part 4!)
Rutgers AAUP-AFT Facebook page: https://facebook.com/RUaaup/
Follow us on Twitter @ruaaup and Instagram @rutgersaaup
Freedom School YouTubeChannel: https://rutgersaaup.org/YouTube
Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/rutgersptlfc
Follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @ruaaup_ptl
Visit our redesigned website: https://rutgers-ptlfc.org/
AAUP-BHSNJ website: https://onerutgersfaculty.org/
AAUP-BHSNJ Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RUaaupbhsnj