"Auburn University is not a poor institution, so why do we have poor employees?"
This was the question asked tonight at "Are We Living the Creed," a discussion and presentation by the capstone hunger studies class and Living the Creed organization at Mama Mocha's Coffee Emporium and Roasters.
The hunger studies capstone class is made to pick a subject each semester that it believes needs to be addressed. This semester, the class chose to follow in the footsteps of the previous year and continue working to provide a living wage for University employees.
"We wanted to do something close to home, so we started digging," said Anna Kirkland, senior in psychology. "We started wondering, 'How much do the University employees that feed us every day make?'"
Because Auburn University is a public institution, the class was able to access employee salaries online. Through research they discovered that many weren't even meeting the poverty line.
"We are seeking to get everyone to earn a living wage," said Kate Thornton, director of hunger and sustainability. "A living wage means earning enough to cover basic needs: health care, child care, housing, food, transportation and taxing."
The event began with a video presentation created by the students in the class. Heavy emphasis was placed on the first line of the Auburn University creed which states, "I believe this is a practical world and that I can count only on what I earn. Therefore, I believe in work, hard work."
Pieces of paper were passed around and guests were invited to write down why they care about providing living wage salaries, as well as sign the petition.
Jordan Johnson, junior in industrial systems engineering, said he attended the event because he truly believed in the cause.
"My major is all about efficiency and productivity and about caring for workers," Johnson said. "Without people doing great work then nothing gets done, and we have to take care of those people because they are the backbone."
Gabriela Hayes, senior in laboratory science, believes many people are unaware of the struggles so many employees are facing.
"Students were confused at seeing Auburn University employees walking into the food pantry in their uniforms," Hayes said. "Because they wondered why they would need that if they are full-time employees."
Kirkland believes it's important for everyone to come together to support this cause.
"If we say we are the Auburn 'family' and 'all in' then we need to really take care of the Auburn Family," Kirkland said.
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