'Enough is enough': Western graduate students claim they are living in poverty
Preparations are underway for a rally Tuesday at Western University’s UC Hill.
The focus of the rally is the annual income of graduate students.
“This is to bring attention to the university that graduate students are living in poverty,” said Karuna D’Souza, president of PSAC 610, the union which represents teaching assistants (TA’s) and post docs at Western University.
PSAC 610 said it is nearly impossible for its researchers to get by.
“With rising rent costs, and inflation — the highest it’s been in years — how do graduate students survive on the meager income stream from the university?” asked D’Souza.
D’Souza added, “The minimum is $13,000 per year from the university. When you take off the ancillary fees, students who are doing research the university profits from are getting about $1,000 per month to live on in London. Rent in London for a one-bedroom is $1,600 per month.”
Graduate student Kesavi Kanagasabai said she and many of her fellow students need multiple jobs on and off campus to earn enough money.
She recently led a study among grad students which produced some staggering results. 76 per cent of grad students’ report challenges finding housing, 44 per cent identify as food insecure, and 55 per cent couldn’t afford clothing or basic hygiene products.
“That's concerning, because our students should not feel as insecure,” said Kanagasabai, who is vice president of the Society of Graduate Students (SOGS).
“A lot of them have mentioned that they've gone to the food bank as well. About five per cent of our membership — which is about 7,000 students — have already gone to a London food bank. That is very concerning, and we do not want to deplete city resources,” Kanagasabai added.
Western University said it meets regularly with the Society of Graduate Students to discuss and implement ongoing supports.
Graduate students are full-time students and approximately 2,000 are employed on campus as graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) for about 10 hours per week or less (depending on the structure of their funding package),” Vice-Provost of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Linda Miller, told CTV News London in a statement.
“The current hourly pay for GTAs is $47.22 per hour,” she added.
Miller added that the PSAC collective agreement expires on Aug. 31, 2023.
“Hourly rates and hours of work for GTAs will be discussed during the collective bargaining process in the months ahead,” said Miller.
To make their voices heard, PSAC 610 will hold a rally at UC Hill on Tuesday at 11 a.m. They want to make noise and demand action. They claim that students have been “living off credit cards,” and “working multiple jobs while Western U reports millions in excess revenues.”
“We're not asking for much,” said D’Souza. “We are asking just so that we can survive and do our work and do our research and contribute to society like we want to. But we can't do that, if we don't have enough to eat, or we don't have a place to live. How do we do that?”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.