Chicago Losing More School Librarians

Budget cuts continue to erode school libraries in Chicago.  In 2013, Chicago Public Schools budgeted for 454 school librarians.  For the 2017-18 school year the number is 139.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-cps-librarian-cuts-met-20170902-story.html

Greenwich Library Workers Stage 48-Hour Strike

The planned cancellation of a mobile book service has prompted Greenwich library workers to strike for 48 hours this week. Over the last year, the mobile book service delivered 33,000 books to area children at schools and child-care centers. A Unite official said:

Literacy is a fundamental human right and anything that erodes that life chance should be strongly opposed. Good reading skills are the key to decent employment in adulthood – so the blinkered actions of the council need to be condemned.

Library Workers in Ireland Vote on Industrial Action

Library workers in twelve counties in Ireland were asked to vote on industrial action after plans were announced to amalgamate library services. IMPACT, the union representing the library workers, has stated that the workers and other relevant officials were not properly consulted about the plans, which could leave some counties without a librarian and force workers to travel long distances to get to their new workplace. In total, 87% of the library workers voted in favor of industrial action. The affected counties include: Carlow, Cavan, Cork City, Cork County, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Longford, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo and Westmeath.

Barnet Library Workers Strike in Protest of Plans for Unstaffed Libraries

Barnet Council library workers are on strike once again in continued protest of planned changes to library services and staff hours. The council is facing serious budget cuts, and in response has plans to keep libraries open to the public without library staff present. They hope to accomplish this by staffing the libraries with volunteers and installing self-service equipment as well as security cameras. Children under the age of 15 years will be unable to make use of these unstaffed locations unless accompanied by an adult. Barnet Council hopes these measures will save  £2.85 million.

Six of Barnet's library branches were closed this week as a result of the strike. Barnet library workers are represented by UNISON.

VIDEO: CUPE Launches TV Ad Campaign in Newfoundland & Labrador

The Canadian Union of Public Employees, the union that represents library workers in Newfoundland and Labrador, will be launching a TV campaign next week to protest the recently announced decision to close 54 of the province's libraries. 

While the province maintains that the closures and resulting lay-offs are necessary due to budget cuts, one of the CUPE ads contrasts the anticipated $1 million in savings with the $1.4 million in severance the province will be paying a former CEO of Nalcor, a provincial energy corporation.

A map of the libraries that are currently scheduled to close over the next two years can be viewed here. Contact information for the province's education minister as well as a template email protesting the closures are available via the Newfoundland and Labrador Library Association website. 

United Teachers of Wichita Vote to Shorten School Year

United Teachers of Wichita has voted in favor of shortening the overall school year and lengthening each school day in response to state budget cuts. The alternative option that the union is trying to avoid is the elimination of some librarian, data leader, and custodial positions. The changes to the school year are pending approval from the district school board.

A Portrait of Failure - Union Report on Australia's Cultural Institutions

Australia's Community and Public Sector Union has released a report detailing the effects of budget cuts on libraries, museums, and other cultural institutions. The full report, titled "A Portrait of Failure: Ongoing Funding Cuts to Australia's Cultural Institutions", can be viewed on the union's website. The budget cuts have negatively impacted digitization projects, staffing levels, opening hours, and exhibitions. In the accompanying press release, the deputy secretary of the union said:

“The people who work in these institutions are dedicated to carefully searching out, preserving, nurturing and displaying the very best of us. Whether it is our fine art or our comic relief, our iconic films or our oral history, our war memories or our family ancestry, we all need our cultural institutions to continue preserving our past and protecting our cultural heritage.”

Bristol Library Workers Vote in Favor of Strike

Library assistants in Bristol have voted in favor of strike action in response to the closure of one of the city's libraries and the reduction of hours at the remaining six libraries. The changes in hours of operation has resulted in changes to the library assistants' work schedules. The workers are members of UNISON.

Owens Community College Faculty Association Takes Pay Cut

Library workers, child care workers, counselors, and other faculty at Owens Community College in Ohio have agreed to a new collective agreement that includes salary cuts and the elimination of overload and summer pay. The college is under a fiscal watch after enrollment has declined significantly, and members of the faculty association have agreed to the reduction in compensation "in order to continue to provide this important education to students in our community", according to the faculty association president.

Budget Cuts at National Library of Australia

Coming budget cuts at the National Library of Australia are expected to result in the elimination of at least twenty staff positions and reduced services, including cancellation of subscriptions. Additionally, some services may be outsourced. Community and Public Sector Union deputy secretary Beth Vincent-Pietsch stated: 

"What's become clear from our meetings is that the cuts to jobs and programs that have been announced so far are only the start of the process. We expect all of these agencies to be forced to make further cuts. The government needs to recognise the long-term and in many cases permanent damage these cuts will do, and reverse them immediately so that Australia's cultural heritage can be kept alive."

The reduction in funding from the Australian government will result in similar measures being taken at other Australian cultural institutions, including National Museum of Australia, National Portrait Gallery, Museum of Australian Democracy, National Film and Sound Archive, and National Gallery of Australia. 

Rally at Library of Birmingham

Library supporters recently took part in a rally to protest reduced hours and staffing levels at the Library of Birmingham. Library hours have been cut nearly in half and 100 staff members have been laid off as a result of major budget cuts. Donald McCombie from UNISON said "We’re asking this government to rethink their decision to introduce these cuts to the library and recognise the value it offers to the citizens." The library has only been open since September 2013, and cost £189m to build.

Videos and pictures from the rally can be viewed online.

Parents Protest Cuts to Quebec School Library Positions

Concerned parents and students showed their support for school librarians at a recent meeting of  Quebec's Lester B. Pearson's School Board, protesting the board's recent decision to eliminate all librarian positions. One parent was quoted in the article as saying:

We are here to support the school librarians and let them know how important libraries are and that reading is very important. I don’t think what they are doing is right. Hopefully, they can find some funds and we can keep our school librarians. I’m worried we are sending the wrong message to our children, that reading is not important. Reading is absolutely important. Honestly, it’s devastating for the schools and for the children. There is only so much a parent volunteer can do.

Librarian Positions Cut in Quebec Schools

Librarian positions at Lester B. Pearson School Board in Quebec may be eliminated at the end of this school year in response to $14 million in budget cuts. Anita Nenadovich, the head of the union that represents the librarians and other staff, said:

"To say that librarians are no longer necessary is really quite devastating. This is affecting every elementary student's education." 

Media Specialists in California School District to Be Let Go

Library media specialists are among employees of the Calaveras Unified School District who are to be laid off next year. Students, teachers, a principal, and the union spokesperon have all spoken out against the elimination of the media specialist positions, with one student stating:

The main thing I want to address is the sheer fact that our librarian is just as important as the library itself. To some of us, that library is a second home and the librarian an ear open to listen.

Some schools within the school district are already operating without a media specialist.

Petition to Stop Closure of Imperial War Museum Library

Prospect union has launched a petition in response to the proposed closure of England's Imperial War Museum library. The Museum and its library were founded in 1917 and, according to its website, have a mandate "to provide for, and to encourage, the study and understanding of the history of modern war and 'wartime experience'". According to a Prospect spokesperson:

Closing IWM's library is not a fitting way to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. IWM aspires to be a highly respected authority on its subject matter, but this will be impossible without a library.

Closure of the library would result in the loss of up to 80 jobs in addition to the loss of this collection. Sign the petition here. 

Rally and Read-In at University of Sydney

Staff and students at the University of Sydney again held a rally in response to planned changes to library services and structure that could result in the loss of 156 jobs. This most recent rally included speeches and a read-in at Fisher Library.

Rally at University of Sydney

A rally was held earlier this week at the University of Sydney in response to planned changes to library services and structure. Under the new plans, 156 library jobs will be lost. The university administration contends that the changes are needed in order to keep pace with technological developments and user habits, and that all staff affected by the cuts are welcome to apply for new positions at the library.

Librarians Eliminated at London District Catholic School Board

Due to declining enrollment, seven school librarian positions as well as a number of other support staff positions will be eliminated from the London District Catholic School Board in Ontario. This will leave 29 librarians for the district's 45 elementary schools. Moira Bell, CUPE Local 4186 president, stated: "Administration is proposing balancing the budget on the backs of front-line workers. CUPE workers are feeling disposable, devalued and dismissed". 

University of Sydney Library Union Organizes Campaign

A campaign is currently underway to save library services at the University of Sydney. University administration has announced a major restructuring that will see the transformation of several libraries into study spaces with the removal of collections and staff. The union representing library workers, the National Tertiary Education Union, has stated that the administration's plans are "vague", with "little detail" provided about the "total job losses, the nature of change/s to the provision of library services, and the nature and scope of change/s to positions and working conditions." A petition is currently circulating in response to these proposed changes.

Miami-Dade Commissioner Against Paying Union Reps

A commissioner from Miami-Dade County has spoken out against paying full-time union representatives who have been excused from their normal employment responsibilities. From the linked Miami Herald article:

Commissioner Esteban “Steve” Bovo, citing a Miami Herald report, has sponsored legislation directing county administrators who must renegotiate union contracts next year to eliminate or reduce the number of exempt employees.

... 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/08/26/3587113/commissioner-asks-miami-dade-to.html#storylink=cpy

“Shouldn’t employees that are doing the union work be paid by the union to do their work?” Bovo asked at a commission meeting Monday. “Why does the taxpayer have to front that bill?"

Bovo's actions come after weeks of worry about potential library closures and lay-offs in the Miami-Dade public library system, as well as cuts to the county's fire department. According to the latest update from the city, 169 library workers will lose their jobs while all library branches will remain open, many with reduced hours of operation.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/08/26/3587113/commissioner-asks-miami-dade-to.html#storylink=cpy