No. 2: Todd Wolfson and Rebecca Givan

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Joining a massive wave of labor action throughout the country, academic workers at Rutgers University – the largest public university in the state – went on a historic five-day strike in April, rallying for higher wages, increased benefits and better job security for adjunct faculty, among other requests.

Over 9,000 workers represented by three unions took to the picket lines in New Brunswick, Camden and Newark for a five-day strike – the first-ever since the university’s founding in 1766 and the largest public-sector strike in New Jersey history. After Gov. Phil Murphy intervened, pressuring both sides to come to terms on a framework, the pickets ended and classes resumed. Nearly a month later, 93% of voting members across three unions – Rutgers AAUP-AFT (full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral associates and counselors), the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union and Rutgers AAUP-BHSNJ (health science faculty in the university’s biomedical and health sciences facilities) – cast ballots in favor of ratifying new four-year contracts that provide pay boosts and additional job security.

The potential for a strike loomed over Rutgers from late last year as faculty and staff from the unions had been working without a contract since summer. After negotiations went nowhere, unions voted in late March to authorize a strike.

Rutgers AAUP-AFT President Wolfson stated, “This is a new moment for higher ed labor around the country. Other unions representing graduate workers and faculty organized, struck, and won strong contracts, inspiring us to fight for more. And now we’ve contributed to the largest strike wave in the history of public higher education.”

“We have a vision of a public university that works for our students, our communities, and everyone who works there—and we’ve taken important steps toward achieving it,” said Wolfson, an associate professor of journalism and media studies

Givan, general vice president of Rutgers AAUP-AFT, described the vote to ratify as the “culmination of intense efforts by so many people who walked the picket lines and organized with their colleagues.”