The University of Iowa Undergraduate Student Government called on the university to raise the minimum wage of student workers after passing a resolution at their March 31 meeting.
The resolution asks the university to consider a tiered system for student worker wages, bumping up the minimum wage, from $8.20 an hour to $14 for entry-level jobs, $15.50 for student lead positions, and $17 for more demanding jobs such as student technical support positions.
USG Senator Landon Kort, the primary author of the resolution, said the Johnson County Board of Supervisors’ recent recommendation to raise the minimum wage to $13.37 per hour due to the rising cost of living, factored into the resolution.
“The reality is a lot of these on-campus jobs are paid very minimally,” Kort said. “If I were looking for a job where I would be paid on average $15.70 versus $12, I think it’s a natural inclination, especially if I really need the money to pay for my expenses, to take that off-campus job.”
Kort said the authors of the resolution modeled the tier system for minimum wage off of Morehead State University in Kentucky, which uses the same model.
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“We thought a minimum wage tier system would be beneficial in that it provides baselines, especially when you need experience and skills for certain jobs,” he said. “We think it makes more of a standard for pay.”
Kort said the resolution only opens the door to conversation with university student wages and that the university has to adopt any of the specific actions in the resolution before increasing them.
Kort and the other USG proponents of the bill hope to see the university implement increased student wages by spring or fall 2027.
“The goal of every member is to benefit the lives of our constituents,” he said. “USG is unique in its ability to be a voice for student needs. And I hope that even just putting a resolution where we’re encouraging that out of the university, they take that as a sign that this is something that we should consider.”
Equipment check out changes
USG also passed a bill allocating $14,000 from USG reserves to create an automated system for checking out student equipment from IMU lockers.
Written by Senators Georgianna Bohnet and Brian Li, the bill changes the present system where students to go to the IMU front desk to rent student resources such as chargers, umbrellas, or hammocks, using an Excel spreadsheet to record their checkout time for each item.
“There’s not really an actual locker system for checking out student resources. So this would be kind of a new system,” Bohnet said.
The new system would allow students to access and return items on their own schedule, even after the IMU’s normal operating hours, without needing staff to manage checkouts.
Li said USG will begin evaluating bids from potential companies to install the automated service on April 3.
“When we’re moving to this automated system, it’s going to be a lot more laissez-faire,” he said. “Students can come in whenever they need it. They don’t have to work around the IMU schedule.”