The three striking unions of Rutgers University have reached a tentative agreement that could end the four-month strike, which revolved around pay increases, teaching conditions, and health care coverage. The deal includes a 43.8 percent increase in the per-credit salary rate for part-time lecturers over the four years of the contract, as well as an increase in minimum salary for postdoctoral fellows and associates by 27.9 percent over the same period. These contracts would be retroactive to July 1, 2022 but must first be voted on to ratify them.
As a result of this development, union members have suspended their plans to strike next week. Many faculty members are expressing enthusiasm about this potential resolution to their historic five-day walkout involving roughly 9,000 members.
"The tentative agreement is an important step forward in providing fair compensation and working conditions for our dedicated faculty and staff," said Dr. Robert Barchi, President of Rutgers University.
However, negotiations are still ongoing with regard to core demands from the medical faculty represented by AAUP-BHSNJ—though both parties are generally optimistic about reaching an accord soon.
In addition to salary increases for full-time faculty and counselors (14 percent by July 1st), part-time lecturers will receive a substantial boost in terms of job security along with other benefits: "This is not just about wages; it's also about creating stability for our hardworking part-time lecturers who play such an essential role at our institution," explained Nancy Wolff, President of Rutgers Council of AAUP Chapters (AAUP-AFT).
Graduate students also stand to benefit from these improvements through increased salaries: "$40k annually may not seem like much compared with what some professors make—but given how many hours we put into research activities each month outside classes…it's definitely going help ease financial burdens substantially," said Tim Hares, a graduate student in the Department of History.
The tentative agreement must be ratified by union members through a secret ballot process. In the meantime, students are eager for normalcy as they approach exam season and the conclusion of their academic year.
An estimated 67,000 students have been affected by the strike thus far; however, with this new framework addressing wage concerns as well as benefits and working conditions for various staff categories—full-time faculty, graduate student workers, postdoctoral associates, counselors and biomedical faculty—there is hope that disruptions to educational activities will soon become a thing of the past at Rutgers University.