I'm writing about the job situation at Athabasca University, and the discussion that began with a public town hall meeting in the spring, attended by our prospective MLAs Colin Piquette and Travis Olson.
There has been a lot of discussion lately about jobs moving out of the community, and the difficulty of attracting and retaining staff here. I'm in a supervisory position for a couple staff at the university; my unit has abundant work and a real need for more permanent staff. Mine is a very common story in the university right now. The work isn't going anywhere and there seems to be funding, but none for the creation of permanent jobs in the community.
Athabasca University has been under a hiring freeze for about five years, requiring that new positions be approved by the Board of Governors. In most cases, that permission doesn’t seem to be easy to get; instead, we rely increasingly on short-term contractors either brought in on a temporary basis, or outside of the community. We still manage to spend money and still manage to do work, but without actually building the stable jobs that the community and work require.
Of course, even when there are new professional jobs created, they often seem to be located in Edmonton and Calgary. I know from experience that there are skilled people who would love to work and live in Athabasca — I’ve met some of them; I also know that there is enough work and money to support them, but there doesn't seem to be any desire to make those jobs happen.
It’s time we stopped relying on short-term contracts and casual labour, and began building up the community again. The work is there and the money is still being spent; all it would take is some political will.
Geoff Loken
Athabasca University Faculty Association Constituency Representative
