1.  What is the Earlham Fair Wage Campaign?
 The Earlham Fair Wage Campaign is a group of students, faculty and staff, that believes all employees of the college (including subcontracted employees—i.e. Sodexho) deserve a fair wage.  A fair wage contains two components: a living wage and yearly raises that adequately compensate employees for length of service and loyalty.

2.  What is a living wage?
 A living wage is an hourly wage sufficient to keep a single-income family above the poverty line.  This has been calculated to be $9.00/hour in Richmond.

3.  What is wage compression?
 Wage compression refers to the situation in which the wages of starting workers and those of long-term employees are pushed together. While starting salaries rise to remain locally competitive, small annual increases erode the gap between new hires and experienced employees. The result is a surprisingly tiny gap between senior and starting employees. Because retirement benefits are based on wages, wage compression inequities can penalize employees long after they have left Earlham College.

4.  How does this affect Earlham hourly employees?
Here is what some employees had to say about Earlham as an employer:

“What hurts is when they hire in a new person.  That person makes just pennies under what I am making and I’ve been here [several] years.  This has been going on since I started here.  Everyone is affected like this and this is no way to keep us motivated. They just pile more [work] on us.”

“My concern is to make a living wage so I don’t have to work two jobs.  I also see that we are not respected in the eyes of management."

5.  What does the Community Code say about this?

We believe that Earlham’s labor practices conflict with the “peace and justice” and “respect for persons” provisions of the Community Code.  In an employer-employee relationship, respect means the employer would treat the employee as a human being and pay her/him a fair wage.  A fair wage is respectful in the sense that it indicates that the work is appreciated and valued.  Poverty wages prevent a family from experiencing the quality of life that we all deserve.

6.What can you do to help?
Sign the petitions being circulated by members of the Fair Wage Campaign.
Attend the Fair Wage Campaign meetings every Wednesday at noon in Tyler 100.  All supportive community members are welcome.
 

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