By: Pranjali J Mann, News Writer
This month, the SFU Board of Governors passed a motion to begin the certification process for becoming a living wage employer.
According to Living Wage for Families BC, living wage is calculated by providing an estimated “bare-bones calculation” for wages as needed by the employees to meet their expenses. Under this wage rate, “employers take into account their employees total wage plus benefits. If employees receive non-mandatory benefits, the living wage rate is reduced.”
SFU’s announcement aims to address the issue of low wages among their food and services workers and “will explore the creation of a program that supports educational opportunities for contract workers, provide access to additional campus benefits where applicable, and find other ways to enhance inclusion for contract workers as members of our campus community.”
The living wage and benefits are set to reach the contract workers in “a phased approach as contracts are renewed over the next three years.”
To understand the announcement and its benefits, The Peak reached out to Yabome Gilpin-Jackson, SFU vice-president, people, equity, and inclusion. She said, “This move underscores our commitment to listening to our people and taking meaningful action that will have a positive and substantial impact on the lives of workers in our community. Moving toward becoming a living wage employer is an exciting step on our journey to greater economic equity and social inclusion.”
Contract Worker Justice Campaign
The Peak interviewed Kayla Hilstob, a member of the Contract Worker Justice (CWJ) campaign coalition at SFU. She said, “Having a living wage is a very positive thing [but] outsourcing is really the root of the problem. And so, workers can have better wages, which is great, but their hours are usually cut, they are laid off seasonally, they have to apply for [employment insurance] all the time. Their benefits are worse than their counterparts at different universities. So yes, it does touch on one of the problems, but it’s not the main problem and there are all sorts of other problems that stem from outsourcing.”
Explaining the underlying issues with outsourcing workers, she said universities will select the lowest bidder to reduce their costs when looking for an external company. “What that means is cutting wages, cutting benefits. So, whoever can provide basically the cheapest workforce to the university, will get the contract. That in itself is the problem and that’s why workers are being paid less, having less benefits and have access to much less of the facilities on campus or basically none.”
Hilstob’s interview also highlighted the problem of invisible labour and poor “working conditions that have a lot of arbitrary power imbalances” contract staff are exposed to. Some of the key matters included not having enough time off, inadequate uniforms, and allegations of discrimination, she explained.
Workers’ voices
Similar problems surfaced in The Peak’s conversation with some workers within the cleaning and food services. One anonymous worker alleged they were given inadequate breaks in the heat. The interview took place in another language and has been translated to English by a fluent speaker. “They just give us a five minute break. That too, we have to call five minutes before taking the break. And after the five minute break, you have to inform them that.” They added their request for 10 minute breaks have been declined and are assigned two to three floors per person. The Peak was unable to independently verify this due to the publication deadline.
The Peak also spoke with Nouha, a dining hall staff member. She indicated parking and daycare are key areas of concern for her. “I have a few women right now. They’ve done their job, but they don’t have any childcare. And they need some, at least for one day or two at the daycare. Who do we approach for that kind of help?”
Nouha revealed the current wage is incapable of keeping up with inflation. She said, “Even though they gave us good pay, it’s not enough without the living wage.” Nouha added they receive a $0.40 raise in their second and third year of working, but that it does not account for inflation.
Hilstob noted the lack of direct involvement of the workers’ voice in the decision making process. She said, “When they did a study on outsourcing at the university, they published through Deloitte. They just published it. They didn’t speak to a single worker when they did a study about outsourcing.” Another worker said, “Someone should be there to listen to our problems. They should be solved right away. Nobody listens to our issues. Who should we tell them to — some higher officials or bosses? No one has ever made an effort to listen.”
Lastly, Hilstob stated, “We consider this announcement a win, but it’s not enough. Our goal is ending outsourcing and we’re not stopping until we win this goal [ . . . ] And so, we hope that students, staff, faculty, more contract workers, anybody else who wants to be involved in this campus community — we hope that you will join us!”
This is a developing story that The Peak will cover in future issues. For more information on the CWJ campaign, visit their website.
