By Kelly Heyboer/ The Star-Ledger
NEWARK — The faculty at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey did not leave their old school happy.
When their university merged with Rutgers University earlier this month, the 1,350 professors and librarians from UMDNJ had not had a raise in more than four years. UMDNJ officials gave raises to administrators, but declined to continue negotiating a new contract with the faculty union because of the impending Rutgers takeover.
In the waning days before UMDNJ dissolved, the union members overwhelmingly approved a “vote of no confidence” in the administration’s ability to resolve the long-simmering labor dispute.
Now, it’s Rutgers problem.
Though no dates have been set, Rutgers officials are preparing to open negotiations with UMDNJ’s faculty union in the state university’s first labor relations test since the merger of the two universities.
The professors and librarians from UMDNJ’s former schools are clear: They want a raise from their new employer.
“We will be asking for salary increases that reflect the current marketplace,” said Joe Holtzman, a veteran UMDNJ professor who is serving as the chief negotiator for the American Association of University Professors chapter, known as the AAUP-UMDNJ
[…]Rutgers’ faculty union, which represents 4,800 employees, settled its contract with the university last year. However, the non-tenure-track faculty are currently trying to negotiate a salary increase, new job titles and better working conditions.
The group of 859 employees, who include Rutgers instructor and research professors on one-year or multi-year contracts, wants minimum salaries raised from less than $40,000 to $55,000. But the group has not made much progress with Rutgers’ negotiators, said Ann Gordon, a recently retired non-tenure track history professor serving as the head of the union’s bargaining team.
“It’s like pulling teeth to get the meetings scheduled,” Gordon said.
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