Staff who operate many of the student services at SFU, including Out on Campus, the Women’s Centre, and the SFSS Print Centre, have been locked out, without a contract for 10 weeks.
The lock-out was initiated by a unanimous vote of the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) board of directors, who decided that they had no more money and should blame the union representing 20 employees – five of whom are students.
A quote from SFSS president John McCann in Xtra! demonstrates their ideological commitment to hold out on any concessions to the union
SFSS president Jeff McCann says the society is broke and the cuts need to be made for the sake of all students.
“It’s kind of interesting when people say, ‘End the lockout because those services aren’t being provided,’” says McCann. “Yes, right now and for the last 10 weeks those services aren’t being provided, but every single year the budget cuts are reducing programming by 40 percent, year after year after year.”
He says that unless the union makes concessions, other cuts will have to be made.
“We need to be able to find that balance,” says McCann. “Otherwise we’re not going to have an Out on Campus. We’re not going to be able to afford it. We’re not going to be able to afford anything that we do.”
There’s several articles in The Peak about the lockout, but in each McCann provides quotes that show little compassion or desire to resolve the situation. In his world, the union has been fired without the awkward confrontation.
While I would generally oppose fee increases at university, student union fees are the one place where you can actually see where the money goes. The portion of the SFU undergrad activity fee used for operations has not risen in 15 years, despite the school expansion and inflation. Revenue for the SFSS is therefore dropping with respect to what they’re spending – so it’s little surprise that they’re running a deficit. The Board’s strict refusal to consider this avenue is further evidence of their hardline ideological stance.
Kelly Thoreson gives a decent run down of the numbers involved for The Peak, whose libertarian-leaning editorial board has had few kind words for the locked out workers.
The lockout is also happening against the backdrop of the potential SFPIRG eviction. SFU’s Public Interest Research Group is a student-run centre that supports environmental and social justice research, education, and action. The SFSS Space and Oversight Committee (a committee of the board), has decided that the space currently leased to SFPIRG would be better used by as student space, despite the fact that SFPIRG is student run and funded.
This move isn’t surprising to anyone who followed the debacle last year when conservatives on campus tried to force “democracy” and “accountability” into SFPIRG by hijacking meetings of the SFSS board. It seems their tactics have changed, but the goal remains the same: stamp out progressive voices on campus.
The one positive in the situation is that the Graduate Student Society is still on the side of students and workers, and voted unanimously in support of the union. The frustration for the GSS is that they partially fund these services – to the tune of $45 000 annually – through the SFSS. So while the lock out goes on, they are simply paying for services not rendered.
Further, the union organized an alternative clubs days for clubs that refused to cross the picket lines. I’m proud to say that the SFU Skeptics were among those who participated.
SFU has a history of being among the most radical campuses in Canada. These recent events threaten that spirit of progress and open debate.
While my time at SFU is coming to an end, students need to stand up for a campus that represents the world we want to see.
Isn’t it pretty “radical” as to what is currently happening in campus? After all, the moniker “radical campus” comes from the idea that what happens at SFU is foretelling of the political discourse that will happen in the near future.
There’s nothing really radical about rolling back progress.
Employing rhetoric like “rolling back on progress” makes no sense. The spirit of progress is not ideological which seems to be what your implying. Isn’t an open debate occurring? What is this that I am doing literally right now? The fact that you chose to pull quotes from Mr.McCann that discuss the need for budgetary restraint in order to keep services for the long run, and yet express that he does not show any want for resolve nor shows any compassion seems far from fair and open. Also the trend to weaponize ideological belief is dismaying. Having attended those “hijacked” meetings (which are meant to be held for the purposes of OPENNESS AND TRANSPARENCY) and being labeled anything other than a person who had the right to show up and question exactly how my student funds were allocated, was offensive and the all too wrong type of radical. If you or anyone hopes to make a difference and change a wrong you see in life, you gotta buck up and let the “hijackers” talk themselves into their own hole. Seems like that lesson needs to be learned on all sides. Its one thing to shut your mouth and have people think you’re stupid, and it’s another to start talking and prove it.
The SFPIRG situation wasn’t even brought to board. It was discussed in only the space committee and the moment they voted on a RECOMMENDATION to be sent to board in the next meeting it was rectified. The Space committee apologized and all was set right. They made a mistake and apologized for it, what else do you want? It wasn’t ideological, it was new people in new positions not understanding the full contract between the SFSS and SFPIRG. Putting both that situation and the lockout together shows your ignorance to the situation and your plea to make people forget the actual facts and hold onto this “ideological” bullshit. I support SFPIRG and the SFSS lockout.
If you really believed in open debate, then you would stop saying this is an ideological (where it doesn’t even make sense that somehow 15 students from different races, religions, faculties and classes came together and somehow all became capitalist conservatives) battle and maybe come to an info session about the lockout and speak calmly and respectively about the side of the staff.
Also, every year there are more fees charged to students. Every year tuition goes up and while it may seem like little to you that everyone will be charged an extra 3-8 dollars, it makes a difference to me. If you don’t have to raise student fees, why should you?
It’s also funny you don’t mention the staff wages or any of their benefits. From almost every student I’ve talked to it seems their sympathy for the staff becomes non existent the moment they realize they get paid $31 an hour PLUS all the other stuff they get.
The SFSS aren’t some big company who are screwing over workers to make themselves richer. They are just a bunch of students who were given a society with a huge deficit and no compromise situation from the union. Jeff is right, it’s about balance and it’s about time the union learn that they can’t just hoodwink and get whatever they want from the SFSS because they are students.
This idiot of a president needs his ass impeached…His legacy of a lock out is the worse ever since I’ve been on this campus!!!