Questions about the Union of Rutgers Administrators-American Federation of Teachers, Local 1766
Q. What is the Union of Rutgers Administrators?
A. The Union of Rutgers Administrators is a group of 2,000 administrative workers who joined the American Federation of Teachers, the largest union of higher education employees, to form URA—AFT.
Q. What is the AFT?
A. The American Federation of Teachers is the largest union in higher education and a strong union of professional workers. Uniting with more than 35,000 professional workers in New Jersey and more than 1.3 million nationwide in AFT gives our voice tremendous power. For more information, see www.aft.org
Q. Are any other administrative and supervisory staff unionized in New Jersey?
A. Yes, in fact, almost all higher education staff around the state have unions. The AFT Council of New Jersey State College Locals represents professional staffers at The College of New Jersey, Kean University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University and the A. Harry Moore School, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College, Rowan University, Thomas Edison State College and William Paterson University are all represented by AFT and these schools did not suffer the same extent of layoffs as Rutgers did. See their contracts at www.cnjscl.org/Prof_Staff.htm.
Q. My position is funded through a grant. Can I still be in the union and have a contract?
A. Yes. Many unionized workers are grant funded. There are provisions specific to grant funded workers that are negotiated in our contact.
Q.How much are union dues?
A. Membership dues are set by the membership at 1.2% of salary.
Q. Where do my union dues go?
A. The majority of membership dues stay at the local level. The membership dues that go on to the state and national level are used for supporting the local’s needs i.e. grievance trainings, professional development, research departments, etc.
