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When administrative assistant Leslye Lowen reported as usual to Rutgers’ Cook Campus on June 19, she received a layoff notification. Prior to her union forming one year ago, Lowen was an “at will” employee without a contract and would have been out of her job without recourse. This year Lowen has the right to challenge the layoff because her department violated the contract by opening a new job with the same title doing the same work at the same time. So instead of going quietly into an uncertain job market, Lowen turned to her contract and is standing with her union members to demand justice.

“This is a clear attempt to fire an active union member for exercising her rights,” said union president Lucye Millerand. “So we immediately filed a legal challenge against her layoff.” Lowen and the union are utilizing the grievance process and expect to prevail, but her boss Michael J. Pazzani has refused to honor the contract and return her to work.