The ETSU chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America started a campaign to raise the minimum wage to $15 for all ETSU employees. Currently, the minimum wage is $10.15, but research is revealing that that amount is not sufficient.
The existence of a minimum wage is for it to be able to cover the minimum requirements of living, but that doesn’t seem to be the reality for some. Because of that, the concept of a living wage has been discussed- something that people can not only survive off of, but live off of.
A living wage would allow workers to take more deserved days off work, go on more mentally-beneficial vacations and stop living paycheck-to-paycheck. Nobody should have to struggle to survive, especially if they are already working their hardest to do so.
Additionally, many of employees who work at places like Chick-fil-a and Starbucks at ETSU are students, with additional expenses and loans.
The YDSA dispersed a survey about working conditions for employees on campus, and 65% of the responses stated that the employees’ basic needs are not affordable based on their current wages.
Students who work on campus should be able to live off of part-time working hours. The standard working hours of a part-time college student who is enrolled in full-time credit hours is just 15 hours. Without taking out taxes, a student making $10.15 an hour would be making about $150 per weekly paycheck. If wages are increased to $15 an hour, their paycheck increases to $225 a week.
Even on a full-time salary, an employee would be making just over $21,000 annually at their current wage, but the recommended yearly income for a single person in Johnson City is $43,176. See the problem?
The YDSA is calling for the Student Government Association to pass legislation to fix this. When it comes to issues regarding money, the university usually shuffles their feet, but if we let them hear how important this is to us, they just might listen.
Rather than pushing for the minimum, we need to ensure that the members of our community aren’t just surviving, but flourishing.
