Keg | page three news 21 student jobs killed Eleven Douglas College summer employment pro- jects that would have given employment to twenty-one Douglas College students has been cut due toa conflict between the British Columbia Employees’ uni- by Ian Hunter on, the Ministry of Labour and Douglas College. The conflict arises out of the students wage rate which has had a base rate of $4.15 an hour for the past three years. Douglas College received $52,000 from the Ministry of Labour in the from of reem- bursements to the college. The union feels that it is unfair for the students to work for $4.15 an hour and insists that the base rate by at least $4.50. As the college would end up paying the $10,000 difference, the projects were killed. Robert Sawka, the per- sonel manager at Douglas, said, ‘‘10,000 is significant portion of our small budge, we would end up taking money out of another pro- gram. I don’t want to put words in your mouth, but the Minister of Labor has not raised the base rate in three years despite the fact that the minimum wage has risen to the point where it is not much lower than that base rate.’’ Virginia Greene, director of employment opportuni- ties at the Ministry of Labor, says that ‘‘the $4.15 an hour was never intended to be the full wage...depen- ding on the individual con- tract negotiated with the British Columbia Employees Union, this may end up being the full wage, but in many cases the. sponsoring employer pays on top of that.’’ ‘Right now,’’ says Kim Manning, vice president of the student council, ‘‘the college is receiving subs- tantial benefits from the program. Projects such as microfilming 10,000 student records and preparing each for an individual microfilm record, and production of a separate audiovisual cata- logue for Kwantlen College and Douglas College should be worth the money.’’ The Other Press March 26, 1981 WELL, OF COURSE, THE MACHINE TAKES Capilano College protesters meet with education minister Victoria (CUP) - Thirty angry Capilano College stu- dents took their grievances about inadequate education funding directly to the B.C. Legislature March 18, only to leave eight hours later more frustrated and disilu- sioned than before. The students went to Vic- toria to directly petition education Minister Brian Smith about the severe fi- nancial restraints his minis- try’s -policy is placing on community colleges like Ca- pilano, which faces a $400,000 deficit next year. But Capilano students’ faculty, and support staff representatives emerged ‘Wholly unsatisfied’’ from a 30 minute meeting with Smith. “The first thing he said when we walked in, ‘‘cut- backs, what cutbacks?’’, student representative Ca- therine Ludgate said. ‘‘He attacked us for crying wolf, but he didn’t have anything substantial to prove that the problems weren’t there. We spent five months trying to get to meet him and all we get in return is thirty minutes of bullshit.”’ Capilano faculty associa- tion, support staff union and student society have formed an alliance to combat conti- nued raises in tuition fees, and cutbacks in course se- lections and campus jobs..° Capilano student Steven Howard said the colleges budget would be raised 10 percent » next year, an amount Howard says means further cutbacks in services and teaching staff because of inflation. “The meeting only con- firmed our original thoughts that the minister is incom- petant’’, Howard said. “‘His inaccessibility only delayed information and the formation of our impres- sions of his inadequacy. “T think it’s quite clear that the minister just sup- plies the rhetoric, while the bureaucracy behind him ac- tually supplies the policy.’’ But the socreds diffused the issue by announcing in the legislature that Smith would meet with the student delegation. Smith's office had said earlier that he would not speak to the pro- testors until later this week. The students had also planned to camp on the legislature’s grounds until an audience with Smith was arranged. p ‘‘There’s no reason at all - we should have to go these lengths to meet with him,’’ said Ludgate. ‘‘He treated the meeting almost as if it was a favour to us and actually it’s his responsibi- lity. : A chance meeting with Premier Bill Bennett on a 'siveness ‘leave happy.’’ Victoria Street a few hours later reflected the students frustration as Bennett and students exchanged bitter barbs. “I think you’ll probably be hearing from us again,’’ Howard told Bennett. ‘‘be- cause your ministers eva- isn’t letting us Said Bennett later: ‘‘All I know is that colleges in my area aren't very happy.’’ The thirty protesters were members of Capilano’s Anti-Cutbacks Team; a coa- lition of students, faculty and support staff which is campaining this term to bring the sorry state of post secondary education to the public. As the students did. on the steps of the legisla- ture, the coalition has held soup kitchens to graphically - portray the plights of their college. Maybe it's time you jumped into something more demanding than a car pool. BG ‘The Canadian movement for personal fitness. VANCOUVER (CUP)--More than 700 University of B.C. students shouted support for unified action against government cutbacks and tuition fee increases at a March 18 rally. And when UBC president Doug Kenny failed to show up the students went loo- king for him. “It’s time we stood up and said we have had enough of this,’’ Maureen Boyd, student accessibility committee chair, told the students. Though student and labor groups were represented at the rally, neither the uni- -_|versity administration nor the faculty sent represen- tatives. Students boycotted classes for two hours in order to participate. “By not coming here (Kenny and Education Mi- nister Pat McGeer) are ex- pressing as loudly. and clearly as they could the contempt they hold for stu- dents and for everyone else at the university,’’ political science professor Phil Resnick said. “In the end changes are not going to be given. Rights have to be gotten through militance,’’ he ad- ded. By the end of the rally students were angry enough to march‘to Kenny’s office jhim. ‘We want Doug’ ~ the university’s operatin and demand answers from 66 Chanting we want} Doug,’’ and ‘‘they say cut back, we say fight back,”’ more than 600 students arrived at the president’s office, only to find him not in. While 150 students waited in the hall outside his office, another 100 continued on to the faculty club to see if he was there. Faculty were surprised at the sudden invasion. - “J wasn’t aware there was a class boycott,’’ said professor Robert Conry over lunch. ‘‘] was here the last time students occupied the faculty club,’’ he said, re- ferring to the 1968 student occupation led by yippie leader Jerry Rubin. Kenny finally arrived one hour later and denied char- ges that he was out of touch with student issues. ‘““You’ve been selling us down the tubes,’’ ‘one stu- dent shouted at him, but Kenny-said he felt he was properly representing the university community. Asked about the current policy of indexing tuition fees to at least 10 percent " I budget he said, ‘‘I don't agree with you on that. think the public in general supports students paying 10 percent of the cost of their education.”