Rutgers faculty strike enters third day

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ - The faculty strike at Rutgers University is now on its third day, with professors on the picket line instead of in classrooms.

Union reps say the strike is a response to the university’s delay on negations regarding the pay rate of part-time faculty, who teach more than a third of the university’s courses yet earn less than 32 thousand dollars annually. 

"I think most of the students and me myself are in support of it because I know all of the coaches are making millions and the professors TA’s all that aren’t making enough at all," shared a junior at the university.

Students do acknowledge that they are feeling the impact of those professors’ absence from the classroom.

"All of my classes so far have been canceled. All of my professors sent out emails on the first day of the strike talking about how classes won't resume until the strike is over," shared Angelique Dinnall.

"A lot of them have been canceled a lot of them have been moved online a lot of exams have been taken to new different dates. It’s been a confusing couple of days," said Dylan Shah, a Junior.

The timeliness of the strike is a major concern for students on week 13 of a 16-week semester with final exams scheduled to begin on May 4th.

"If our final exam is affected that takes a huge hit on our overall grades," Shah said. 

"I’m assuming it's going to end soon, but I’m concerned about the graduation aspect of it because I’m not sure what's going on no-one's told us anything," said Marco Vasta, a senior.

The details of where the university and union reps are with their negotiations remain unknown but students are hopeful for a resolution sooner rather than later