In order to “reverse the burden of student precariousness”, the Fédération étudiante collégiale du Québec (FECQ) and the Union étudiante du Québec (UEQ) are launching a mobilization campaign across the province on Saturday, hoping to make their demands heard by the government.
The mobilization campaign focuses on three areas: a redesign of the calculation of the financial aid program for studies (AFE), the creation of measures against food insecurity and the remuneration of internships.
“We are increasingly hearing stories from students who work part-time and who are cutting back on their studies because they have no choice but to work. This is a reality that worries us greatly,” explains Étienne Paré, president of the UEQ, which serves the university community.
According to him, the most important aspect of this mobilization would be the establishment of a project to update the AFE. Étienne Paré believes that at the moment, the program is “not representative” of students’ needs, because it does not cover certain expenses such as housing and is not adjusted for inflation, particularly with the protected income – which determines the amount that a student must provide himself to support his needs.
This last point “was introduced in 2004 based on 35 hours per week at the minimum wage. However, the minimum wage increased much faster than expected,” explains the president of the UEQ. The result? “If a student who uses the AFE works too much, the amount offered in scholarship will decrease. But you have to be able to provide for your needs and the AFE alone is not enough. It’s a never-ending cycle,” he explains.
Mr. Paré fears that students will prefer to borrow funds from private institutions, which can offer larger sums. “We have a great program, the Minister [de l’Enseignement supérieur Pascale Déry] “She says so herself, but if no one uses it, it’s useless,” he says.
Need for something “concrete”
In order to “publicize” the AFE, encourage eligible students to use it and take the pulse of the student population, the campaign will tour the province’s campuses by meeting with the various local student associations. On Friday, Pascale Déry noted an increase of 11,000 AFE beneficiaries. An increase that is “not enough,” according to Étienne Paré.
Friday, Mme Déry specified in the Duty that she had met with the FECQ earlier this week. The association took the opportunity to ask for a review of the calculation method. “We’re going to look at that, we’re going to see how we can improve the AFE. I’m always open to improving this program, since it’s a program that is truly the pillar of the mission even in higher education,” she said.
An opening that is welcome, but not “enough,” according to the president of the FECQ, Antoine Dervieux. “We can’t wait to see what will happen in concrete terms,” he adds. Mr. Dervieux cites as an example the remuneration of internships, “which had been promised last year.” “Ultimately, we still don’t have any paid internships,” he says.
Even though Étienne Paré wants to be as cautious as Antoine Dervieux regarding the minister’s openness, he is pleased to have the Coalition avenir Québec’s Commission Relève present at the announcement of the campaign launch. “Having the youth wing of the party in power with us, I think it sends a strong message that everyone recognizes that there is an issue,” he says. The youth groups of the Parti québécois, Québec solidaire and the Parti libéral du Québec were also present.
Pay for “all internships”
The reality of a student who must “juggle between study, work, internship and other responsibilities” due to the unpaid nature of his internship is of particular concern to the FECQ and the UEQ.
Even though Étienne Paré and his counterpart from the FECQ hammered home during the press conference the importance of paying “all internships”, Mr. Paré placed emphasis on internships in the public sector, such as education or health, where the labour shortage is particularly severe.
According to him, paying internships could be a solution to this shortage of manpower. Based on his own experience during his studies in teaching, he says that receiving a salary during internships could motivate students to finish their studies or to enroll in these fields. In addition, “if we remove this pressure on their wallets during their studies, they would be less tired once they arrive on the job market.”
Through the campaign “Let’s reverse the burden of precarity”, the FECQ and the UEQ also want the government to provide financial assistance to student associations that set up community fridges and food baskets. “At the moment, it is the associations that have set up solutions, but it is costly,” explains Antoine Dervieux. “It would be a weight that could be lifted off the shoulders of the associations.”
To do this, Mr. Dervieux indicates that the mobilization campaign will ensure, during its campus tour, to highlight the efforts of student associations to combat food insecurity, in the hope of “showing the government the need for a subsidy.”
With Zacharie Goudreault