AAUP-BHSNJ LAUNCHES CAMPAIGN TO ADDRESS INEQUITY AT

RUTGERS BIOMEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES

New Brunswick, NJ – The American Association of University Professors Biomedical and Health Sciences of New Jersey (AAUP-BHSNJ), the union representing 1,400 faculty at Rutgers University’s Biomedical and Health Sciences (RBHS), today launched a public campaign to remedy pay inequities and reform policies that harm students, staff, and patients alike.

Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, the academic medical arm of Rutgers, plays an important role in New Jersey.  Its clinicians take care of some of the sickest and most vulnerable patients in the state. The faculty teach the next generation of professionals, many of whom stay in state after graduation. Its researchers have also brought Rutgers increased distinction since the UMNDJ-Rutgers merger in 2013.

However, this institution is losing its way.

RBHS Chancellor Brian Strom made $1,120,888 last year. If he was the head of a university, he would be in the top 1% of salary for university chief executives. There are also plans to hire more vice chancellors and other administrators. Meanwhile, New Jersey Medical School is 8^th highest among public medical schools for student debt.

Further, “Rutgers clinicians are habitually over-worked and under-supported – they deserve better,” said AAUP-BHSNJ Executive Director Diomedes Tsitouras. “Increased workload creates expectations to see more patients than time permits and this will only get worse if there are unrealistic quotas, as proposed, for the number of clinics a faculty member must complete per week.”

Quite simply, Rutgers’s priorities are misplaced.  It needs to invest in students and patients, not only in administrators.

The campaign will include a variety of highly visible public advertising to call on students, patients and the community to make their voices heard and help reform Rutgers.

About AAUP-BHSNJ

The AAUP-BHSNJ is an independent, non-profit organization that represents 1,500 faculty at Rutgers/Rowan Universities. These faculty teach the next generation of doctors, nurses, scientists, and health professionals. We believe in a vision where our universities are models for faculty engagement and provide a high-quality work environment for everyone.