by Kip Malinosky and Jeff Dubin
Earlham is a unique institution. All of its
policies are, in theory, based on the
Community Code. Among other things,
the Code encourages respect for persons
and the pursuit of peace and justice.
Many Earlham graduates, faculty, staff
and students have dedicated their lives to
fulfilling these aspirations. Earlham
admittedly gives itself a real challenge by
striving for such high expectations, and
sometimes it falls short. Yet most would
be surprised to see how wide certain
gaps between the theory and the current
practice at Earlham are today.
Many of the college's hourly employees
earn a wage below the poverty level.
Others have seen their wages stagnate as
long-term employees are given meager
compensation for their length of service.
Who are the hourly staff at Earlham?
They are the people who clean up the
mess in the dorms. Many of them fix
lights, mow grass, trim bushes, and
replace windows broken by students'
midnight revelry. Others manage the
department offices. They also include
workers at Sodexho, Marriott who are
not directly employed by the college, but
are considered by many to be members of
the community and respected by students.
These employees work hard to make life
at Earlham pleasant, and they deserve the
respect of the community, not only in
words but in deeds.
The Earlham Fair Wage campaign is a
group of students, faculty, and staff who
believe that the Community Code
mandates that all workers are paid a fair
wage. A fair wage has two components: a
living wage and rewards for senior
employees.
A living wage is an hourly wage that is
sufficient to keep a single-income family
above the poverty line. A study by
Arizona State University economist Dave
Wells found that a living wage for the
city of Richmond would be
approximately $9 per hour.
A fair wage would also include an end to
the system of wage compression, or the
process in which senior employees'
wages stagnate in comparison to those of
new workers. Many who have worked
for Earlham for many years are not
getting the raises they deserve. As one
hourly worker puts it, "They don't want
anyone here after 10 years so they won't
have to pay as many benefits. They
obviously don't want to pay any money
for loyalty or longevity."
Enacting fair wage will not be cheap,
especially when the college is running a
deficit. But financial concerns do not
justify the college in violating the
Community Code. Based on research the
Campaign has done, it is feasible to carry
out a fair wage policy without raising
tuition or negatively impacting salaried
staff.
What can members of the community do
to help bring about a fair wage policy on
campus? For one, you can sign a petition
expressing your concerns to the
administration. Members of the campaign
will be tabling with this petition in
Runyan today (Feb. 18). It will also be
circulating in other ways. In addition, you
are invited to a presentation on the fair
wage report on Monday, Feb. 28, at 4
p.m. in the Orchard Room.
If you have any questions, please email
the authors at malinch or dubinje.
- Kip Malinosky is a first-year; Jeff
Dubin is a senior psychology major.