OPINION: University Missing In Action on Living Wage
Words by William Bell-Purchas (he/him)
Two years ago, Te Herenga Waka promised to pay their staff a living wage. As we approach the release of the updated 2023 pay rate, the university’s promise still hangs in the balance.
In May 2021, then-Chief Operating Officer Mark Loveard fronted staff, students, and alumni in the Hub. He’d just heard the stories of a cleaner and security guard working at the university.
“We’ve made a commitment to pay the living wage. We are phasing it in over four years and we’re over half way there,” he reassured the crowd.
“The university isn’t an institution, it is the people. It’s the students, the academic staff, the professional staff. We are the community that is the university,” Loveard continued.
In his speech, Loveard beautifully articulated what the living wage movement is asking from THW and its new Vice-Chancellor Nic Smith.
Unfortunately, since May 2021, there has been little progress. Major groups of staff are set to be paid ^below a living wage this year. The 2023 recalculation will be announced on 3 April.
The living wage is independently calculated and reflects the minimum amount of pay workers need to live with dignity. Paying the living wage is a simple choice that employers can make to improve the lives of their employees.
Over 350 employers in Aotearoa currently do, from small to large businesses and organisations. Aotearoa’s entire banking sector, which employs more than 25,000 people, pays the living wage. It’s good for collective wellbeing and good for our economy.
In 2022, the living wage was set at $23.65, but due to increases in the cost of living, we are expecting this to increase significantly.
The living wage movement is urging THW to seek living wage accreditation, aligning itself with international universities like Oxford, Cambridge, and King's College London.
Accreditation means that all staff and contractors are paid the living wage. To maintain living wage accreditation, the university would have to continue to pay the living wage as it rises with the cost of living, securing its reputation as an ethical employer in the long-term.
Support for a living wage at THW is widespread, including among student rep groups such as VUWSA, the Tertiary Education Union and E Tū, students, and alumni.
This support was on display on 15 March, when a hundred students gathered in the Hunter Lounge for a living wage panel, hosted by MP Chlöe Swarbrick. Panellists represented the breadth of knowledge within the living wage movement, and were appalled that THW allows staff to get by without fair pay.
THW is one of Wellington’s biggest employers, and a living wage is an opportunity to tangibly improve the quality of life of its staff. Raising the wages of its lowest-paid workers would also set a precedent for other New Zealand universities.
This would be in line with other living wage accredited public employers, such as the Wellington, Porirua, and Hutt City Councils.
Instead of kicking changes down the line on matters as crucial as fair pay for staff, the university’s leadership team has an opportunity to foster a community that lives up to the values it claims to represent: “respect, responsibility, fairness, integrity, and empathy.”
Mark Loveard said two years ago, “We’re committed [to paying a Living Wage] because we believe it’s the right thing to do, we believe that’s what our people want, what our community wants.”
So, how long should we wait?
Welliam Bell-Purchas is the Co-President of Students 4 Living Wage. To get involved in making Te Herenga Waka Aotearoa’s first living wage university, email students@livingwage.org.nz