University students across Canada held a national day of action to fight rising post-secondary tuition fees in the country on November 8. Led by the Canadian Federation of Students, protestors were joined by many labour allies in their call for free and accessible education.
Among the labour organizations supporting this call was Unifor, which represents more than 300,000 private sector workers in Canada.
“Our members, just like yours, feel the pressures of Canada’s current affordability crisis on a daily basis,” Unifor wrote in a public letter to the Canadian Federation of Students. “It is why our union believes that universal public services, including health care and education, are the best way to provide working people with the social supports they need to learn, live, and provide or care for their loved ones.”
Students who took to the streets also received support from organizations like the Canadian Association of University Teachers and the Ontario Secondary School Teacher’s Federation.
Rising tuition fees create more barriers for low-income youth who may need a university degree to break into certain sectors. According to Statistics Canada, the unemployment rate for Canadians aged 15 to 24 sits at 11.4 per cent. For people aged 20 to 24, the unemployment rate is 9.5 per cent.
Unemployment for young workers outpaces general unemployment rates, which is currently at 5.7 per cent for all ages. For workers aged 25 and older, the number of unemployed people drops to 4.8 per cent.
While explanations are numerous for why young people experience higher rates of unemployment, one factor that often comes up is the price of schooling.
According to an opinion piece on the Winnipeg Free Press written by University of Winnipeg professor emeritus, Jim Silver, improving education for adults can help address labour shortages in healthcare, childcare and more.
“We could have thousands of adults graduating year after year with the skills needed to obtain decent, well-paid jobs that would pull them and their families out of poverty and change them from social assistance recipients to taxpayers,” Silver wrote.
While Silver’s piece mainly focused on high school education for adults, his statements ring true for post-secondary education. According to a report by the CBC, unemployment rates for people with a university education is lower than the rate for those with just a high school diploma.
However, with rising tuition rates, the number of people with the money to pursue post-secondary education is dwindling. Support rabble today!
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“Our union believes that post-secondary education is a right, not a privilege granted only to those who can afford it,” Unifor wrote in their letter to the Canadian Federation of Students. “Unfortunately, many Canadian provinces have moved to make post-secondary education increasingly out-of-reach for working people and their families.”
