I left the Fight for $15 rally held by the Washington University Graduate Workers Union early to go sit at the desk of my job on campus. For a Wash. U. student, I have a pretty cushy job. I mostly fill a desk for 10 hours a week while doing research and work that I enjoy. But the majority of jobs at Washington University are not filled by undergraduate students; they are filled by graduate students and by adult workers with families. And many of those workers are paid the same small wage as me: only $8-$12 an hour. $12 an hour from a University that has some of wealthiest students in America.

A recent StudLife opinion article entitled “Wash. U. is the best school in the country” proudly pointed out that Wash. U. is considered one of the most prestigious universities in the world. That same writer said that one of the best parts about being a student is that “The protests about socioeconomic diversity, divesting from fossil fuels and unionization are taken seriously, even if they don’t always immediately succeed.” I’m not sure how the writer decided to measure student attitudes towards protests on campus, but I would counter that being “taken seriously” is not nearly enough. Workers on campus don’t want the University to say “We hear you and we will take what you said into consideration.” They want to hear, “We are going to pay you a fair and living wage, because your work is what literally allows this campus to function.”

As the rally passed through the Danforth University Center, Whispers and Holmes Lounge, there were many students who either joined in or yelled support. Many more rolled their eyes and went back to their laptops. When those students are describing Wash. U. to their parents, I doubt that they will say that student protests add to the University’s prestige. They might write a paper on the importance of some vague “economic diversity” in the classroom, but they won’t take five minutes to ask that the workers here are paid a fair wage. The majority of organizers for economic empowerment on campus are graduate students or union members. Only a small percentage of those at rallies are undergraduate students, despite all the rhetoric about Wash. U. being an engaged student body. Does that sit well with you, Wash. U.?

I have seen countless students leave their trash on a table in the DUC because the janitor will pick it up. I’ve heard many more peers and friends devalue the hard work that service workers do for them every day. “Why should people be paid $15 to put a croissant in a bag?” Because if you want that croissant, someone has to put it in a bag, give it to you, and then take the orders of the 50 students behind you for 8 hours in a row, 5 days a week.

There are students here who balance a 40 hour-per-week job while taking 15 credits so that they can afford to graduate. What does it matter if 8% of the student body receives Pell Grants if the University doesn’t provide direct financial support to those students? What does it matter if we are the third largest employer in St. Louis if we pay workers substantially less than the St. Louis minimum wage? The average salary of Washington University graduates is $74,000 per year. The average salary of the American service worker is $28,082. $15 an hour comes out to a stipend of $31,000 a year, only a few thousand dollars more than the average service worker salary. A student who graduates from Olin this year with a bachelor’s degree in business administration has a median base salary of $65,520 straight out of undergraduate. In one year, they will make over twice the amount of money that the average Wash. U. service employee has made after years and years of working here. Does that sit well with you, Wash. U.?

If it doesn’t, then do more than “take it seriously.” Show up to support the Washington University Graduate Workers Union when they throw rallies on campus and write to the Chancellor to advocate for fair wages. Go camp out with the students occupying the Quad. Talk openly about your experience as a student worker on campus with your friends, your teachers and your classmates. And the next time you talk about the University’s prestige, make sure you mention all of the workers who made that prestige possible.