Contract Campaign 2022

It's 2023 and we're over 290 days without a contract. Here's the latest bargaining update on where we stand in bargaining and how to take action

What R We Fighting For | Bargaining Updates | Organize Your Workplace | Our Bargaining Team |  Events

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What R We Fighting For

  • Annual salary improvements that meet the inflation rate, that do not forgo  raises to January 2023 like management proposed, but pick up from July 2022.
  • Longevity raises that reward staff that keep the institutional knowledge of Rutgers at Rutgers, putting staff that have been here 10+ and 20+ years to the midpoint and max of their salary range, respectively.
  • Actually flexible telework that allows for seasonal change.
  • Appeal process.
  • Actually granting requests for the “compressed work week” of FlexWork
  • Equal implementation of telework across the university.
  • A pool of extra PTO for Permanent, Weather-Related and Situational Essential personnel.
  • Expansion of tuition benefits for legal spouses of bargaining unit staff.
  • Expansion of tuition remission to online credit bearing courses.
  • Self-initiated in-grade salary increases for increased scope, depth, impact, responsibility or complexity of their job.
  • Added types of events admissible for professional development release time.
  • An expedited process for remediating health and safety issues.
  • Right to information including access by union retained health and safety expert.
  • A joint health & safety committee for all the Coalition of Rutgers Unions.
  • Safety walks to identify lighting deficiencies within parking facilities.
  • No retaliation for reporting health and safety violations.
  • Simply asking Rutgers to follow state law, which while isn’t subject to negotiations, can be monitored with Rutgers providing adequate notice of subcontracting out our union’s work, and quarterly reports on all relevant subcontracting agreements.
  •  increase the number of State lines to reflect the growth in enrollment over the last two decades and to provide equitable State support to each of the University’s campuses and chancellor-lead units.
  • Employee max contribution of 1.5% of base salary to the cost of the plan (NJ Direct and NJ Direct 2019). 75% of the contribution rate of NJ Direct and NJ Direct 2019 for tiered plans. All other plans offered by SHBP are 2.5% of base salary to cost of the plan.

Bargaining Updates

URA Bargaining Update by Mary Ellen Maguire

04/13/23 – The URA bargaining team has met with management over forty times, and has tentative agreements on 10 articles, including most recently, Just Cause and improvements to Bereavement Leave.  Parking, Non-Hostile Work Environment, and Probationary Employee are some other tentative agreements. That said, we still have not made progress on key member priorities, including raises in line with inflation, compensation for additional workloads, telework, and recognition for our essential employees, among much else. When presented with thoughtful proposals that would improve our members’ lives and Rutgers, management has often rejected or ignored them. 

This is why members voted to approve a strike pledge drive at the URA membership meeting last Monday. We need to take escalating action, including a potential strike, in order to leverage our power at the bargaining table to win our demands. 

3/06/23 – The Coalition of Rutgers Unions was asked to attend a meeting with less than 24 hours’ notice because Rutgers management said they had a wonderful salary proposal to share with all. Yet the disrespect continued when their team arrived a half hour late. We received an offer that all of the unions found insulting.

Organize Your Workplace

Bring your union into the meeting.
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Our Bargaining Team

Greg Rusciano (URA Executive Director)

Christine O’Connell (URA President)

Charles Basden (Graduate School of Education) 

Diana Byrd (School of Business-Camden)

Leigh-Anne Cobb (Rutgers Business School)

Ryan Csordas (SAS-EOF)

Alexandra DelCollo (Cooperative Extension)

Joshua Eaise (NJ Step)

Justin Esperon (Dining Services-New Brunswick)

Josephine Nagle (Rutgers Law School)

Barbara Nowakowski (SAS Division of Life Services)

Ali Sperling (SAS-English)

Alternates:

Barry Bailey (IP&O), Isaac Jimenez (SASN-Dean’s Office), Mikaela Maria (School of Nursing-Camden), Mary Ellen MaQuire (SAS-PALS), Jack Ouligian (Student Affairs-NB)