NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—Hampered by nearly 20,000 lawsuits, New Brunswick’s own Johnson & Johnson (J&J) will stop distributing talc-based baby powder in the United States and Canada. The decision to stop selling one of its most well-known products came on May 19, but the announcement was buried in the company’s “portfolio assessment related to COVID-19.” “Demand […]
Business & Labor
Mayor’s Furloughs Force 272 City Workers Off Payroll
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—With a pandemic forcing unprecedented closures, eight-term Mayor Jim Cahill announced he had furloughed a number of the city’s workers without saying exactly how many. After officials at City Hall dodged our questions for over a week, Cahill’s office admitted on April 23 that the furloughs have already affected 47 salaried workers and […]
Trying to Close For Good, Hub City’s Sears Left in Limbo by Virus Outbreak
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—The city’s Sears department store will remain open until at least April 19, a week later than previously announced, an employee told New Brunswick Today. The reason for the extension is to allow more time for the “sell-down of goods” on hand in the store, a task that has proven harder than anticipated […]
Rutgers Forced to Close Libraries Amid Pandemic, Pressure From Unions
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—In another move to counter the spread of the coronavirus disease, COVID-19, the state ordered all municipal, county, and State public libraries to close, as well as all university computer labs. The mandate took effect on the evening of March 20, following Rutgers University’s refusal to voluntarily close its libraries, despite criticism and […]
Rutgers Students Shaken as Pandemic Disrupts School
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—On March 17, Rutgers University President Robert Barchi cancelled all in-person classes and events for the remainder of the school year, including the long-awaited commencement ceremonies. It’s part of the latest drastic measures taken to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19–measures that have been met with frustration and heartbreak by students, […]
Supermarket Equipment Owned by NBPA Will Be Auctioned Off
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—Over 100 lots of dismantled commercial kitchen equipment, store fixtures, and refrigerators sit ready for a public auction on February 25 at the site of the shuttered SuperFresh on Kirkpatrick Street. New Brunswick Parking Authority (NBPA), which owns the building and the equipment, recently contracted with commercial insolvency auctioneer, A.J. Willner Auctions, to […]
Million Dollar Men: RWJ Execs Rake in Millions
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ—Financial documents show six men at the city’s biggest hospital collected over $7.5 million from the non-profit organization and related entities in 2018 alone. That year, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH) paid its CEO John Gantner more than $2 million, and paid five other men at least $1 million each for their […]