📚Rutgers University Faculty & Staff Strike: Historic Time, Brah! 🏫
Get ready for some history-making action, cuz! Three unions representing nearly 9,000 Rutgers University faculty and staff are about to embark on an epic strike. This is gonna be the first-ever educator strike in the university’s almost 257-year history, and the unions are fired up to get their demands met. 🚫👨🏫💼
Starting bright and early on Monday morning, union members will be picketing on Rutgers’s three main campuses in New Brunswick, Newark, and Camden, New Jersey. They’re demanding a range of things, including salary increases, improved job security for adjunct faculty, and guaranteed funding for graduate students. Union reps say they’ve been at the bargaining table for nearly a year, and they’re not backing down until they get what they want. 💰🔒🎓
Michelle O’Malley, a Rutgers master’s student, got straight to the point in a virtual town hall on Sunday night. She said that those who are closest to the university’s mission to teaching, research, and service deserve more than to barely survive and scrape by. And the unions are not alone in this fight, with nine other unions seeking new contracts with the university. 🤝💪👊
The university has been urging students to continue attending classes and completing assignments as normal, but the unions’ action is expected to halt instruction and “non-critical research.” Still, the university maintains that “classes are expected to proceed as normal.” Rutgers spokesperson Dory Devlin Sr. insists that the university is open and operating, and classes are proceeding on a regular schedule. However, another page on the school’s website notes that “many classes will continue to meet during the strike.” 📚🚫📝
It’s not yet clear how long the strike will last. The university says it may seek a court injunction to end the strike and “compel a return to normal activities.” Union leaders have strongly resisted the university’s claims that the strike is illegal. But the university insists that it expects all faculty and staff to continue to report to work and fulfill their job duties and responsibilities. ⚖️👨🏫💼
This is all happening just weeks after a massive three-day strike by Los Angeles public school workers demanding increased wages and better working conditions. And now, short-term worker strikes are surging nationwide, with the Rutgers strike the latest in the wave. The stakes are high, with both sides digging in their heels. Union leaders say they’ve been left with no choice but to vote to strike after getting virtually nowhere on their core demands. But the university says it’s offered significant and substantial progress and will negotiate for as long as it takes to reach agreements. 💼🤝🤔
For now, we’ll just have to wait and see how it all unfolds. The striking unions are Rutgers AAUP-AFT, which represents full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral researchers, and counselors; the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, which represents part-time lecturers; and AAUP-BHSNJ, which represents faculty who teach at the university’s medical and public health facilities. Whatever happens, it’s clear that both sides are in it for the long haul, and the fight for better pay and working conditions continues. 💰🏥🎓
NOW IN ENGLISH
📚The strike of Rutgers University faculty and staff is a historic moment, my friend! 🏫
Get ready for some historic action, my friend! Three unions representing nearly 9,000 Rutgers University faculty and staff are about to go on strike for the first time in the university’s 257-year history. The unions are determined to get their demands met, and they’re not backing down. 🚫👨🏫💼
Starting Monday morning, union members will be picketing on Rutgers’s three main campuses in New Brunswick, Newark, and Camden, New Jersey. They’re demanding a range of things, including salary increases, improved job security for adjunct faculty, and guaranteed funding for graduate students. The unions have been at the bargaining table for almost a year, and they’re not backing down until they get what they want. 💰🔒🎓
During a virtual town hall on Sunday night, Michelle O’Malley, a Rutgers master’s student, spoke out about the issue. She said that those closest to the university’s mission of teaching, research, and service deserve more than just barely surviving and scraping by. The unions are not alone in this fight, with nine other unions also seeking new contracts with the university. 🤝💪👊
The university has urged students to continue attending classes and completing assignments as usual, but the unions’ action is expected to halt instruction and “non-critical research.” Nonetheless, the university maintains that “classes are expected to proceed as normal.” Rutgers spokesperson Dory Devlin Sr. has stated that the university is open and operating, and classes are continuing on a regular schedule. However, another page on the school’s website notes that “many classes will continue to meet during the strike.” 📚🚫📝
It’s unclear how long the strike will last. The university has said that it may seek a court injunction to end the strike and “compel a return to normal activities.” Union leaders have strongly opposed the university’s claims that the strike is illegal. However, the university expects all faculty and staff to continue to report to work and fulfill their job duties and responsibilities. ⚖️👨🏫💼
This strike comes just weeks after a massive three-day strike by Los Angeles public school workers demanding increased wages and better working conditions. Short-term worker strikes are surging across the nation, with the Rutgers strike being the latest in the wave. Both sides are digging in their heels, with the stakes high. Union leaders say they had no choice but to vote to strike after getting virtually nowhere on their core demands. But the university says it has offered significant and substantial progress and will negotiate until agreements are reached. 💼🤝🤔
For now, we’ll have to wait and see how it all unfolds. The striking unions are Rutgers AAUP-AFT, which represents full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral researchers, and counselors; the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, which represents part-time lecturers; and AAUP-BHSNJ, which represents faculty who teach at the university’s medical and public health facilities. Whatever happens, it’s clear that both sides are in it for the long haul, and the fight for better pay and working conditions continues. 💰🏥🎓
