'It was very much putting the onus on the individual staff members to navigate distress and dysfunction of these austerity measures'
Queen's University in Ontario is facing criticism amid recent layoffs.
The employer started laying off workers in June, citing a $28.2-million operating budget deficit, according to a report from the Queen’s Journal.
More recently, the university offered in-person and virtual workshops on “transitioning through change” to staff and faculty over the summer.
But a virtual workshop, presented by a representative from TELUS One Health, faced criticism from Queens Coalition Against Austerity (QCAA), a group of staff, faculty, and students opposed to the university’s budget cuts.
Faculty of Arts and Science (FAS) employees at the university have said they have been struggling largely due to increased workloads caused by layoffs.
During the session the moderator referred to what the workers are going through as “difficult times” , according to the Queen's Journal, which the group said was “a term they returned to repeatedly as participants voiced concerns about being inundated with email, navigating uncertainty, and maintaining their mental health, all while managing increased workload”.
The participants in that session were told that they “needed to learn to control their amygdala—the almond-shaped structure in the brain responsible for processing emotions,” according to QCAA. “Participants were reassured that even those with innate unhappiness can overcome their inborn disadvantage, however, by focusing on their strengths.”
Participants were also told to “smile more”, do push-ups to stop the train of negative thoughts and keep a rubber band on one’s wrist to be snapped in moments of difficulty.
Here’s how to handle layoffs with compassion and integrity, according to one expert.
‘Resilience discourse’ at Queen’s workshop
What the sessions did was promote “resilience discourse,” said QCAA.
“Resilience discourse is a strategy for ensuring compliance. In other words, making individuals responsible for managing their suffering and discouraging them from questioning austerity measures or other systemic forces at the root of their hardship.”
“The push for constant positivity and resilience underestimates the importance of addressing systemic issues and providing comprehensive mental health support,” the group added.
Courtney Szto, an associate professor in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies, who was at the workshop, supported the workers’ claim.
“It was very much putting the onus on the individual staff members to navigate distress and dysfunction of these austerity measures,” Szto said, according to the Queen’s Journal. “Staff brought up very genuine fears and experiences of anxiety and having a lack of control over their work [in the comment section], but none of those concerns were actually addressed in meaningful ways.”
