News October 2, 2002 The Squat Lives On Eileen Velthuis News Editor There are still protesters at the corner of Hastings and Abbott in downtown Vancouver. On Saturday September 14, squatters, activists and support- ers occupied the old Woodward's building, which has been unoccupied since 1993, to press for action on social housing. The following Monday, all were told they would have to leave. Throughout the week, more and more people showed up to stay and to protest. They have been removed from the building by police twice, and they keep coming back. On Saturday September 21, a reported 58 arrests were made and those people were taken to the Supreme Court. “We awoke at 6:30a.m. to the pounding of riot police at the barricades. I think they probably enjoyed this very much,” protest participant Brent Morley said, describing the police removing the squatters Saturday morning. DC student Jenn Thompson feels that some of the protest- ers are going about it the wrong way, and that some of their “By being too aggressive they've ruined their chances of get- ting what they wanted. They should have found a different approach,” she said. Morley feels that while some were arrested, the protest suc- ceeded in that it was a good way to bring attention to people who are in desperate need of housing. “Yes, the police took the building. Yes, homeless people and supporters were evicted back onto the streets,” Morley said. “But some awareness was raised for low-income housing, and much of the left-over food did go to the local shelters.” He also feels that the province should re-prioritize their spending. “How much was spent by the province in taking back the empty building? The cost of mobilizing the riot police, the overtime spent on the extra uniformed officers, not to mention the cost of hailing and sending to court the 64 [sic] protest- ers...it might be cheaper for the province to ante up and pro- the other press actions are unnecessary. : : : » vide some low-income housing. Atlantic Canadian Grads Earn Less Jennifer Henderson fitlantic Bureau HALIFAX(CUP)—Atlantic Canadian university graduates seeking work may have to venture outside the region if earning potential is their top priority. A report issued by the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation indicates that Atlantic Canadian university graduates earn “significantly less” than counterparts in other provinces. According to the report's co-author this discrep- ancy is a reflection of regional economics rather than educational quality. “I don’t think it’s saying anything about the con- dition of graduates but rather about the workplace conditions they’re coming into,” said Sean Junor. “In smaller provinces such as Manitoba, Saskatchewan or, in this case, Nova Scotia, you don't have the high paying jobs, the company head offices that can pay incredible starting salaries.” Job-seeking graduates can expect to earn $25,000 in Atlantic Canada compared to $29,500 in Central Canada and a high of $37,000 in Western Canada. It’s a statistic that Junor doubts residents of the region will find surprising. “There’s a lot of data in this report that are sur- prising. I’m not sure that this is the most surprising. Simply, the wages paid in cities like Halifax and St. © page 4 John’s aren't as high as those paid in Calgary, Toronto or Montreal,” he said. David Hare, the Nova Scotia chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students isn’t surprised by the findings on the low starting salaries of Atlantic Canadian graduates but he is taken aback by what he perceives as omissions in the report's contents. “The fact that Atlantic Canada has lower starting wages and higher unemployment than other parts of the country is not surprising,” said Hare. “What is surprising is that this report ignores the student debt crisis.” Hare believes that the low starting salaries are yet another obstacle Atlantic Canadians must face when choosing to pursue higher education. “The debt crisis in Nova Scotia is appalling. The Millennium Scholarship Foundation has done noth- ing for Nova Scotia. Couple that with the highest tuition in the country and then couple that with the lowest starting wages and high unemployment and you have a catastrophe,” he said. According to Fred Morley, vice president and chief economist of the Greater Halifax Partnership, these potential financial hardships aren't keeping young graduates from choosing to call the region’s largest city home. “Usually low wages are a reflection of a low demand for labour,” said Morley. “We know that the unemployment rate in Halifax is fairly low. There are more people wanting to live and work in Halifax than there are jobs.” Morley believes that factors other than salary may be what makes Halifax most attractive to young workers. “Wages don't tell you everything. If your costs of living are a little bit lower in Halifax then that comes into play. Quality of life is another factor as is prox- imity to friends and family.” According to Junor’s research such intangible ben- efits might not be enough to keep graduates in the region. He believes that increased mobility among young Canadians means that recent graduates are free to seek their fortunes outside their home provinces. “The businesses that are there offer the best they can. If that’s good enough students take them up on it. If not, they pursue other options. People migrate where the high wages are, whether the cost of living is higher or not.”