Differential fees are, in my opinion, the first barrier to a student being able to come to or immigrate to Atlantic Canada. As an international student, I can say that it is very unfair. It just shows that there's really no respect for international students who want to come here and start their lives. Because we have those differential fees, because we pay 3.5 times more, and because we can only work part time, we are the biggest users of food banks. As a matter of fact, at MUN 60% of the bags were given to international students.
I cannot speak precisely of anyone getting paid cash and not having a contract, but I can definitely speak to the fact that international students are struggling in very difficult living conditions. We are not wealthy. We have to break the myth that international students are wealthy. We are not. We come here to escape different climates in our own countries and to make our lives here. We need to equalize all students across the board if we are meant to stay here.