[5] Management bargainers provided counter-offers of gradual raises at percentages lower than those requested by Rutgers AAUP-AFT and rejected many provisions regarding working conditions.

[11][12] New Jersey governor Phil Murphy's extensive involvement in negotiations to end the strike was considered unprecedented and was praised by both union officials and Holloway.

[13] In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020, Rutgers declared a fiscal emergency and laid off more than 1,000 staff members, including dining-service employees and adjunct professors.

[17] In April 2021, the Coalition of Rutgers Unions reached a deal to prevent further layoffs until January 2022,[18] but concern for job security and fair wages in the meantime remained.

[21] Rebecca Givan, president of the American Association of University Professors – American Federation of Teachers (AAUP-AFT) union, criticized the "upside-down priorities" of Rutgers administration, saying: Everybody else at Rutgers has to follow strict rules and jump through a hundred hoops around expenses like these, but apparently the rules don't apply to the athletics program or the top administrators who oversee it.

And at the same time, the administration tells us they don't have the money for urgent needs, like a central program to guarantee funding extensions for graduate students whose work was disrupted by the pandemic.

[22]On December 6, 2022, hundreds of students and faculty gathered at Voorhees Mall on New Brunswick's College Avenue Campus to protest the lack of bargaining progress.

[27][28] Throughout March and April, university president Jonathan Holloway gave periodic updates on labor negotiations to students and faculty, mostly through email blasts.

An open letter calling him to rescind his statement was signed by over 40 scholars, including Ibram X. Kendi, Elizabeth Hinton, and Judith Butler.

[31] The unions responded to Holloway's warning by arguing that there lacked specific prohibitions behind assembly and work stoppage in the state constitution or statutes.

[38] Shortly after the strike was announced, Jonathan Holloway wrote in an email to the Rutgers community: "To say that this is deeply disappointing would be an understatement, especially given that just two days ago, both sides agreed in good faith to the appointment of a mediator to help us reach agreements.

"[39] Later that night, Governor Phil Murphy requested for union leaders and university administrators to meet at his office in Trenton to have a "productive dialogue".

[53] The negotiations are expected to continue until a final vote could be held on the new contract, with union leaders cautioning that there remained "open issues that need to be resolved".

[57] The decision to suspend the strike was criticized by some dissenting workers, with World Socialist Web Site accusing union leaders as having signed a "monumental betrayal.

"[70] The strikers were joined in person by national AAUP president Irene Mulvey, U.S. representative Frank Pallone, whose congressional district includes New Brunswick, and Craig Coughlin, the speaker of the New Jersey General Assembly.

[75] The editorial board of The Wall Street Journal criticized Murphy's actions as having put the demands of the strikers over the university's students by disrupting classes and delaying graduations.