American Federation of Teachers New Jersey, AFL-CIO

Professor Strike Looms at Rutgers University Campus as Faculty Demands Equal Pay, More Diversity (Maxfield, NBC)

“We are in the same boat,” Deepa Kumar, a professor and union president, said. “We are fighting for affordable, quality public education. That is why so many students were out today.”
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During campus protest, Rutgers faculty threaten to strike (Carrera, North Jersey News)

“In the North Jersey and New York area we live in, the wages we have are not enough to live on,” said Soili Smith, a graduate worker.…

Colleen Flaherty, InsideHigherEd.com

Rutgers University president Robert L. Barchi on Wednesday pledged $20 million in additional funding for the systemwide Faculty Diversity Hiring Initiative. The current $22 million initiative to hire, mentor and retain professors from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds was set to expire in 2021 but will now continue through 2024.

[…]

Dozens of distinguished professors across the system signed a petition last month criticizing Barchi’s spending priorities.…

Soili Smith has limited choices: She can work a $12-an-hour job and fail to pay her bills, risking eviction. Or she can take a higher-paying summer position that requires her to miss the last few weeks of classes and fly thousands of miles to northern British Columbia, where she’ll work 14-hour days in the bush.

She chose the latter, since it’s really not much of a choice.…