Library Tech Confidential

It seems that Republican Vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin, in the fine tradition of so many concerned municipal politicians from communities large and small, had a book-banning bee in her bonnet.

From “Mayor Palin: A Rough Record” in Time Magazine, via Librarian.net :

[Former Wasilla, Alaska Mayor John] Stein says “[Palin] asked the library how she could go about banning books,” he says, because some voters thought they had inappropriate language in them. “The librarian was aghast.” That woman, Mary Ellen Baker, couldn’t be reached for comment, but news reports from the time show that Palin had threatened to fire Baker for not giving “full support” to the mayor… [read more]

Threatening to fire the librarian for her refusal is somewhat unsurprising, given that Palin also reportedly sacked the heads of other city agencies for alleged ’loyalty’ to her predecessor.

Note to elected officials: undermining the merit principle for staffing and promotion in a non-partisan civil service is no easy shortcut to ‘cutting red tape’ or slashing ‘unecessary bureaucracy’; instead, it’s just another plodding step down the road back to the untrammeled patronage system of the not-so-distant past. Also, don’t mess with the library!

Photo credit: AKMuckraker via WIkipedia.

Library Playground, which I noticed thanks to a trackback commenting on a previous post here, has a really handy RSS feed of Canadian Library Technician jobs derived from a variety of job posting sites from across the country. There’s also a Facebook app version available (if you’re into that kind of thing).

I’ve just added the feed to my NetVibes account so as to keep an eye on the job market for curiosity’s sake.  This could have saved me an awful lot of obsessive bookmark-checking when I was last looking for work, as most of the sites I consulted on a daily basis are included in this mashup.

Library workers to protest ‘out to lunch’ GVLRA policy [CNW press release] : “Beginning today and until further notice, most members of CUPE 410 will be taking their lunch hour at the same time, resulting in the closure of all 9 [Greater Victoria Public Library] branches between 12 noon and 1 pm. Services to the public will not be available during this time.”

The issue? Pay equity.

According to a post the Library’s website, job action has also stopped collection of all overdue fines.

Library cuts may have backfired, board says [Toronto Star] : “Library board officials said they were notified last week that the Toronto Civic Employees’ Union (CUPE Local 416) had won a grievance filed against the board over the Sunday closings.”

Ever since a planned crucial revenue-raising tax measure unexpectedly failed to pass earlier this year, various departments of the City of Toronto have tried to find ways to cut costs the TTC offered up a slew of ‘poor performing’ bus routes plus a fare increase, the police insisted it couldn’t spare a penny, and the library resigned itself to closing on Sundays.

Now TPL may have to pay it’s staff for Sundays either way — that is, whether their branches are closed or not — because their legal advisors apparently failed to acount for the effect of the collective agreement. The 11 branches located in ‘priority’ (read: disproportionately impoverished) neighbourhoods were to remain unaffected. With luck, if this development negates much of the hoped-for cost savings, perhaps the city will relent and revert to normal hours of operation.

UPDATE: Subsequent media coverage confirms the reversal on the Sunday closures.

• Library branches to reopen on Sundays [Globe and Mail]
• Ruling overturns library closings [Toronto Star]

“CUPE BC president Barry O’Neill says a decision late yesterday to close Canada’s only in-house public library bindery is a disgrace to the Vancouver Public Library board members who voted to close it down.” [Press Release @ CNW Group]