September 22, 2014

Page 1

The emergence of art rock In conversation with The Darcys Pg.14

Living on the minimum wage Students weigh in on the merits of an opposition proposal for a $15 federal minimum wage Emma Compeau

VARSITY CONTRIBUTOR

A recent vow by New Democratic Party (ndp) leader Thomas Mulcair to institute a $15 federal minimum wage is prompting mixed reactions from students. Last week, Mulcair said that he would put forth the notion of a $15 per hour minimum wage to a vote in Parliament. In 1996, the Liberal government eliminate the federal minimum wage in favour of provincial minimum wage laws. “Improving the minimum wage is key to reducing income inequality and building a fairer economy,” Mulcair said in a recent press release. Provincial and territorial minimum wage laws range from $10 in New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador to $11 in Nunavut and Ontario.

STUDENT PERSPECTIVES Matthew Li, an upper-year economics student who works a minimum wage part-time job, said that balancing work and school is often

challenging, but is necessary to avoid taking on excessive student debt. “I am taking on student debt to get my degree… I could probably get a better job and make more money somewhere else, but I don’t want to because I am comfortable where I work and my boss is flexible with my schedule,” Li said, adding: “I have friends who work other jobs where their bosses schedule them when they have class and through exam periods, and I don’t want to risk having to worry about that... I am pretty sure that I will be able to pay [my debt] off when I graduate.” Li said that life as a student working on minimum wage is difficult, but expressed concern that increasing the minimum wage may not be the right solution. “Being a student and living on minimum wage isn’t only hard — it’s becoming impossible without the financial support of outside sources or family. That being said, raising minimum wage that dramatically will only drive up inflation… The number will become irrelevant, because prices will adjust along with it,” Li said. “Life is expensive and Toronto is particularly expensive, but this is what we choose as

students attending the University of Toronto,” he added. McKenzie Embree, a third-year environmental studies student, said that increasing the minimum wage would have little impact on large corporations, but could negatively affect small businesses. “I don’t think that raising [the] minimum wage to $15 is a good idea. Large business and corporations like Chapters and McDonald’s can afford to pay their employees that kind of money without a major change to the franchise, but this will initially really hurt small business like privately owned bookstores, which are already suffering,” Embree said, adding: “[I]t will negatively affect the unique places that give Toronto its culture.” According to Mercer’s 2014 Cost of Living Survey, which measured the comparative cost of over 200 items in 201 cities, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods, and entertainment, Toronto ranked 101. Similarly, some have argued that Toronto’s transit system is the most expensive among large, North American cities with single-fare

public transit. While most other Ontario universities provide free bus passes to their students, the University of Toronto does not.

“10 PER CENT ABOVE THE POVERTY LINE” The Ontario Federation of Labor (ofl), a federation of Ontario labour unions that represents over one million Ontario workers from 54 affiliated trade unions, publicly supported the proposed federal minimum wage increase. Sid Ryan, ofl president, said that an increased minimum wage would benefit lowincome workers by bringing the minimum wage above the poverty line. “We believe that the minimum wage needs to be raised because people cannot live on $11.50 per hour. We originally supported a $14 per hour move, which would place minimum wage at 10 per cent above the poverty line. We want everyone above the poverty line,” Ryan said, adding: “[The ndp’s] move of $15 per hour is something we support because it

CONTINUED ON PG 6

INSIDE Comment

Features

Science

The Question: Is Tinder good?

The value of experience

In conversation with David Jenkins

Sports David Scandiffio on his time at U of T

Leading U of T nutritionist shares his thoughts on fad diets and eating on a budget

Key player from 1993 Varsity Blues football remains active at the university

Discussing the app’s implications for the dating world

Exploring the world of unpaid work


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September 22, 2014 by The Varsity - Issuu