Gov. Phil Murphy stopped by the bargaining table on Tuesday as Rutgers University and union leaders negotiated on a second day of a major strike.

Both sides were at the New Jersey State House for the contract negotiations. They met with the governor in a meeting that Murphy said showed promise.

“I think there’s been some progress. But I would also say a lot more progress needs to be made. This, I think a word that was used in there, ‘a spirit of goodwill on both sides,’” Murphy said. “This has a lot of complexity. But there was a lot of goodwill in that room. I was actually quite encouraged by that.”

Murphy met with both sides for roughly 10 minutes. He told them that they needed to get a deal done.

This is all easier said than done when the sides remain at odds regarding pay for part-time and adjunct faculty. Union leaders are asking for raises the university has not come around to granting in nearly a year of negotiations.

“We have to get this done, though. We’re all on the clock and everybody knows that,” Murphy said.

One option that is not on the table yet is a court order to direct strikers to go back to work.

Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway said the governor personally asked him not to go to court. Holloway said he will follow the governor’s lead for now. But he says, “If there is no movement towards an agreement,” he “will have no choice but to take legal action.”

The strike comes as tens of thousands of Rutgers Students are in limbo, unsure of how their semesters or senior years will end.

The governor said Monday that he’s “not a fan” of a deal that gets more money for professors by raising tuition for students.

The Murphy administration has a bit of power. The state contributes about $1 billion to Rutgers’ $5 billion budget.