Report to Convention - May 2002
Action Plan
At its only meeting to date, the Library Committee resolved that its action plan for this term would be to carry out the recommendations made at the 2001 Division Convention, and to ensure that these recommendations fall in line with the Division's new Strategy/Action Plan of Strong Communities.
- The Committee will continue to work with CUPE BC to educate school trustees, parents, library boards and city councils on the value of library resources supported by skilled and qualified library workers. The Committee plans to send a letter, via CUPE BC, to as many school parent advisory councils in BC as possible, highlighting the value of school libraries to children and the skills provided by library workers. It will emphasize the risks and limitations of relying on the Internet as a resource, and that it is not a replacement for school libraries staffed by skilled workers. The hope is to stem and reverse the tide of school libraries being closed or staffed by volunteers or untrained workers. This action defends public services and also addresses the School Amendment Act, which promotes the idea of parent volunteers in schools.
- There are approximately 70 library systems in the province and most are unorganized. In conjunction with the CUPE Works program, the Committee will attempt to identify these unorganized libraries, and work with CUPE BC and servicing representatives to renew efforts to organize them. With help from the Communications Office, the Committee hopes to send out a pamphlet to workers in unorganized libraries, highlighting the benefits of belonging to CUPE. The initial focus of this plan may be on the Okanagan Regional Library system where some of the libraries are organized and others are not.
- In terms of meeting the Division's Strategy/Action Plan for improving communications and coordination, the Committee will attempt to compile as many library collective agreements as possible. This may prove difficult as some school libraries no longer have library workers, while others still do. There is also no complete list of collective agreements in electronic or printed form.
- The Committee will work with CUPE BC to profile school, post-secondary and public libraries as an integral part of strong communities and the education system. Initial thoughts are to embark on a campaign featuring a high-profile person on advertisements to promote the value of libraries. The advertisements, with a slogan such as 'Libraries Build Strong Communities', could be used on buses, flyers, posters, or in newspapers. The Committee will attempt to access available funding from the Division's Communications Campaign on a cost-sharing basis with library locals in the province.
- The Committee will continue in its efforts to improve communications and coordination amongst library workers in BC by informing them of the national listserve for library workers established by CUPE National. The Committee will include instructions on how to join the listserve in the Public Employee, its own newsletter, on the Division's website, and in CUPE BC mailouts.
Other Issues
While the Committee's focus will be on its action plan, it also identified a number of important issues in libraries to follow up on. These include continuing the struggle for pay equity, an increase in the use of self-checkout and self-checkin devices which threaten library jobs, a library workers' conference, and funding.
Funding for public libraries from the Provincial Government has not been increased in ten years. Since costs have continued to rise, this means that the province's proportion of public libraries' budgets, compared to other sources, has diminished. The Provincial Government itself acknowledges that its funding for libraries has not kept pace with the cost of the delivery of new services.
While the Provincial Government has guaranteed funding for the next three years, there are concerns for the continuity of this funding. With the anticipated off loading of financial responsibility to municipalities, libraries anticipate a difficult time at the bargaining table and in upcoming civic budgets. The Premier's Key Project Related to Libraries is expected to examine funding for libraries and the services they provide, although specifics are not yet known. The Committee will participate in this process wherever possible to try to ensure that the Government continues funding for libraries.
The Committee has put on a series of very successful and well-received Library Workers Conferences over the past several years, drawing increased participation of delegates from public, school and post-secondary libraries with each successive conference. It hopes that, allowing for the immediate priorities of the Division's Strong Communities campaign, this trend can continue with another conference in the near future. The preliminary theme of the next conference will relate to libraries playing an important role in keeping communities strong.
Cutbacks
One impact of the recent Provincial Government cutbacks that will be felt directly and immediately by libraries in B.C. is the decision to eliminate the provincial audio books program. This program, provided by the Library Services Branch, produced audio books and made them available to B.C. libraries at no or minimal cost. Cancellation of this program highlights yet again the Liberal Government's attack against the most marginalized citizens of the province, in this case, those with perceptual disabilities.
Many libraries across the province are scrambling to continue to fund, or at least partially fund, audio books from existing budgets. This will mean a decrease in other areas of budgets that are already stretched thin. Unabridged audio books are available commercially but at a much higher cost than was possible through the Library Services Branch. Furthermore, many of the audio books produced by the Library Services Branch were B.C. and Canadian content unavailable elsewhere.
Along with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, patrons who depend on this service have been very active in lobbying the Provincial Government to reverse this cut. They feel betrayed by a government that when it was in opposition was the champion to retain this program when it was under similar threats in 1998. The cost of the program was only $280,000 per year and benefited an estimated 30,000 legally blind and visually impaired B.C. residents.
The InterLINK federated library system, comprised of 17 libraries throughout the Lower Mainland, Sunshine Coast and Squamish-Whistler-Pemberton region, with a service population of 2.3 million, is looking at what possible role it can play in helping maintain some of the services that are currently provided by the provincial audio book program. Public libraries throughout the region provide access to thousands of audio books and recognize the important need this service fills. InterLINK currently maintains over 50,000 volumes of audio books and the member libraries serve 2500 print disabled clients. The member libraries are concerned about the future of the audio book program and preservation of the existing collections.
Respectfully submitted:
Elizabeth Grant – Chairperson
Heather Inglis – Co-Chair
Holman Louis
Marina Kristjanson
Carol Mauriello
Deborah Rouire
Kathy Yardley
Sandra Wray
Jim Gorman – Staff Advisor |
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