MAYOR RAS J. BARAKA STATEMENT

ON RUTGERS STRIKE

“The Rutgers faculty has been at the bargaining table with the university administration for more than a year and they have worked without a contract since June 2022.

“That is no way to treat any union workers, let alone the faculty of our State University.

The key issues in this strike are the pay rate for part-time and graduate faculty. Rutgers hires more and more part-time faculty and fewer and fewer full-time professors. Part-time lecturers (adjuncts) are teaching more than one-third of all classes and they are paid at a much lower rate of pay than the full-time faculty.

“If we stand for anything in New Jersey, it should be equal pay. In addition, the Teaching and Graduate Assistants need adequate pay raises so that they can do their work, finish their scholarship for their PhDs, be able to pay rent, and their student loans. They earn less than $32,000 a year. This is a university that has paid more than $1 million to an assistant coach.  I stand with the faculty unions. Do better, Rutgers.”