Shifts reduced in recession crunch

Student jobs available on cam- pus remain steady this year, but many employers are offering fewer shifts due to budget considerations.

“For the past three to four years, we’ve seen about the same number of jobs and the same number of students looking for jobs,” said Dee Gilbert, student employment supervisor. “This year there has been no increase in the number of students looking for jobs.”

Gilbert explained that many students who find themselves un- employed at this point in the year still have plenty of chances. Positions will open up during Winter Term and also at the beginning of spring term.

“Many first-year students do not find a job in the fall,” she added. Although Gilbert insisted that no particular departments on cam- pus have made drastic reductions in the number of student jobs offered, the number of student jobs available has generally declined in some areas of work.

One of these areas, apparently, was the film equipment room at the D. E. Axinn ’51 Center at Starr Library. Matt Yaggy ’12 said he did not look “terribly hard” for a job at the beginning of the school year, because he entered the year under the impression that he was already hired at the film equipment room.

He waited for a while to hear from his future supervisor, he said, “and apparently they didn’t have enough money in the budget to hire another person. So I started looking for a job, and by that time there weren’t many jobs left. There wasn’t anything that ... would be useful for me, or that I was qualified for. So I still haven’t found a job.”

The difficulties experienced by Yaggy have discouraged other students.

“Sometimes I think, ‘Why both- er looking for a job?’” said Erin Ton- er ’11. “Finding a job that is manageable will be really hard right now because no one is hiring. The more appealing jobs, like the monitor jobs at the fitness center, have less shifts available, so I figure it’s just better to focus on academics.”

At Midd Xpress in McCullough Student Center, students work only four shifts during the week this year, compared to six shifts last year.

The store cut a student-operated Wednesday evening shift in order to avoid overlap between student workers and the owners. The Monday morning stocking shift was also cut, although an employee explained that this change was made due to lack of necessity. Vendors now deliver and stock their own products, which means that the store no longer needs students for stocking services. Midd Xpress does remain entirely staffed by students on the weekends, with six separate shifts available.

In some cases, the number of jobs avail- able has not changed, but the departments have worked to increase efficiency by shift- ing around the times students work during the day. At the Circulation Desk in the Main Library, no reduction has been made in the number of student positions, although less- busy hours now see fewer student shifts. Circulation Services Manager Elin Waagen emphasizes that positions have been “juggled, but not reduced.”

“Although we’ve made changes in regular library staff, a conscious decision was made at our summer budget meeting not to reduce the student budget,” she added.

turnover of student workers from the spring semester to the fall may have made it more difficult for students to find employment.

Fewer available jobs on campus can be particularly harmful to students looking for positions to fulfill federal work-study requirements. Students are authorized for work- study as part of a larger financial aid package awarded by the College. The portion devoted to work-study is given in a specific dollar amount, which the individual is expected to fulfill by finding a job at the appropriate pay grade. Although the financial aid office claims to meet all demonstrated family need, in an explanation of the program on its Web site, the office emphasizes that an award of work- study is “an optional part of [a student’s] aid package,” and that it is his or her responsibility

to find a job once on campus. The policy of Middlebury’s Student Employment office reflects this individual ac- countability, as their Web site reiterates the federal Web site’s criteria.

Many students on campus feel that the current policies and practices are sufficient for the needs of student workers.

“I actually thought it was easier to find a job this semester,” said Alex Bullard ’11.5, who was recently hired at the Vermont Campus Compact office.

Mattias Fitzpatrick ’13 echoed Bullard’s positive attitude.

“It’s important to put yourself out there,” he said. “I think a lot of people just expect to find a job, but you have to be proactive about it.”