At dusk, lights remain on at Rutgers University’s Old Queens building Thursday, April 4, 2013, in New Brunswick, N.J.
Mel Evans/AP
Mel Evans/AP
Three unions at Rutgers University are expected to go on strike Monday morning, they announced.
Participating unions include the Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union, which represents part-time lecturers; the AAUP-AFT, which represents full-time faculty, graduate workers, postdoctoral associates, and counselors; and the AAUP-BHSNJ, which represents faculty in the health and sciences departments.
The unions have been trying to renegotiate a contract for at least a year, and said the university has been blocking their attempts.
“The administration doesn’t understand that we are determined to fight together for equal pay for equal work, a living wage for all, real job security, race and gender equity, and a fair salary increase,” they said. “We have no other choice than to go on strike to build a university that truly values its workers and its students.”
Rutgers University was not immediately available to comment.
Members of the unions, which represent at least 8,000 Rutgers employees, are expected to strike at 9 a.m. Monday. It is the first strike since 1987, the unions said.