‘Two-tiered toilet paper system’ controversy erupts at Toronto’s Ryerson University

Investigation uncovers how staff and students have been issued with different paper in one of the university's buildings

(GorillaSushi/flickr/CreativeCommons)

A university has been thrown into turmoil after a student newspaper exposed inequality on campus - when it revealed staff and students were being provided with different toilet paper, indicating a ‘two-tier system’.

Yes, you read that correct. The Eyeopener - the independent student weekly at Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, discovered a box of ‘thick, absorbent two-ply’ in the institution’s Jorgenson Hall building, prompting further investigation since bathrooms in the building currently only provide ‘translucent, gotta-fold-it-thirteen-times one-ply’.

As it later turned out, the top two floors of the building - 13 and 14 - were the lucky recipients of the paper. The thirteenth floor, described the site, holds the offices of the president, provost, vice-president administration finance, vice-president research and innovation and vice-president university advancement, while the fourteenth floor holds meeting rooms.

As expected, when the #TissueIssue came to light, people just could not cope with a variety of opinions making up the mood on Twitter:

According to the site, the university’s president and vice-chancellor Sheldon Levy acknowledged the issue as being ‘shocking and embarrassing’ while reassuring the student body ‘changes are being made’.

University spokesperson Michael Forbes added this has been the situation for a decade now, but didn’t provide The Eyeopener with a reason as to why this has been the case for so long.

Despite adding around $80,000 (£39,711) a year to the university’s budget, Ryerson’s vice president administration and finance, Janice Winton, said the institution is now looking into implementing change across campus so that students can enjoy the same benefits as staff.

This cost, added Winton, will also need to factor is changes which will have to be made to toilet paper dispensers as well as to infrastructure so that older pipes will be able to handle an ‘increased volume of paper’.