pressure is on to negotiate a deal between Rutgers University and thousands of striking union members now on the picket line for the third day as contract talks continue behind closed doors with the help of the Murphy Administration all sides say there is progress but still no agreement over higher pay and better job protections it's directly impacting some sixty seven thousand students across all three campuses the movement appears to be gaining momentum a fourth Rutgers union now on the verge of joining the strike the unprecedented work action at New Jersey's largest state university is testing the governor's Devotion to the very labor unions that helped him get elected and whether his influence can help broker a deal senior correspondent Brenda Flanagan is covering the story for us and has the latest [Applause] Queen Elizabeth New Jersey joined the rally on day three of an historic strike by three Rutgers University Unions representing 9 000 faculty medical staff and other workers after months of negotiations they walked out for higher wages and job security not just for full-time Educators but crucially for part-time adjuncts and grad workers too the way we are going to win this strike is by solidarity and numbers on these lines that's right it is creating the pressure that we need to put money magically on the table our pressure in our picket lines are working that there has been progress on economic issues at the table that we are moving in a good direction but we are not there anywhere near there yet on the big structural issues around adjuncts and graduate workers this is not just about raises exactly it's about raises but it's also about longer term commitment by the universe University to its faculty across the board the pressure could Spike higher as a fourth union of Rutgers administrators considers a strike vote there are 2500 members work in admissions financial aid residences and dining Halls president Christine O'Donnell claims her Union's crucial to the university we feed them we house them we purchase everything we pay every bill so we could stop this place you could bring some critical pressure I I believe we will Union negotiators tweeted a moment of levity from their war room at the state house where all sides are meeting for a third day at the urging of Governor Murphy who's driving these contract talks and a vowed supporter of organized labor he spoke up for Rutgers families on wnyc's ask Governor Murphy how should the students and their families feel about all this and I said they should be pissed off and so am I Governor Murphy said as he opposes raising tuition in order to settle this strike but he also says he wants a deal that quote wreaks fairness it's a political Balancing Act Rucker's tuition's already risen 2.9 percent this Academic Year tuition and fees pay 28 percent of the University's 5.1 billion dollar budget and state funding picks up about 20 percent of the total asked if he could perhaps increase State support Murphy answered as a general matter yes I don't want to get into the details because we're in the middle of that as we speak I think that all sides are probably looking to the state and to the governor and saying what can you do financially to help us resolve this Rutgers you know may feel that they're putting everything on the table that they can put on the table how can we head off uh you know taking this purely on out of tuition writers Michael Rasmussen says unions who've backed Murphy are looking for solidarity now after supporting his candidates for governor this is the time that tests those close relationships that the governor has with the unions they're looking for support back in return right picketing continues at Rutgers campuses across New Jersey some 67 000 students attend the State University and many report canceled classes in Newark mayor Ras Baraka admonished Rutgers Administration if we stand for anything in New Jersey it should be equal pay I stand with the faculty unions do better Rutgers in fact there's a disconnect felt by faculty in Newark and Camden a perceived lack of equity with the Administration in New Brunswick there is this kind of austerity for Camden because Camden isn't bringing in the same kind of tuition dollars as other places that's one of the reasons you're seeing folks out on the line in such numbers here in Camden this fight is part of of this really long struggle for you know equity for Camden the university says it's bargaining in good faith contract talks are ongoing in New Brunswick I'm Brenda Flanagan NJ Spotlight news [Music]