PAGE 12 | October 16, 2020 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
CRATES, CRATES
EVERYWHERE: It’s
what one worker
called “hygiene the-
ater.” More than
three months after
scientists deter-
mined that inani-
mate objects like
books are very un-
likely to be a source
of COVID-19 trans-
mission, materials
are still being “quar-
antined” for 96
hours at the Mid-
land branch (left)
and throughout the
Multnomah County
Library system, de-
laying the time it
takes for patrons to
receive materials
they place on hold.
At a model library, cuts and turmoil
By Don McIntosh
Last month we reported that pre-
viously announced layoffs at
Multnomah County Library
were mostly averted after an or-
ganized outcry by rank-and-file
library workers. That wasn’t the
whole story, by a long shot. Li-
brary workers, members of AF-
SCME Local 88, are still mourn-
ing the 128 positions that were
cut, out of 580 total. As many as
43 positions had been vacant, but
over two dozen workers took
early retirement or layoff to spare
co-workers, a wrenching deci-
sion. Dozens more faced demo-
tions, hour reductions, and wage
cuts when their positions were
eliminated and replaced with
temporary jobs. Seven trans-
ferred to temporary COVID-re-
sponse positions at Multnomah
County, with no assurance they’ll
have a job after Dec. 31.
What was most galling about
the cuts is that they weren’t dic-
tated by any budget necessity,
but were ordered at the discre-
tion of library director Vailey
Oehlke a week after the library’s
fully-staffed annual budget had
been approved. The library
faces no budget threat because
it’s funded by a dedicated prop-
erty tax that county voters ap-
proved in 2012 by 62%—in or-
der to put an end to recurring
cuts in hours and services.
In phone interviews and on-
line correspondence, over a
dozen library workers described
a profound loss of trust in library
management. Workers say the
position cuts and the resulting
wallop to morale are a major
blow to one of the top library sys-
tems in the country. As of 2016,
Multnomah County Library had
the nation’s fourth highest circu-
lation, 19.2 million (3.4 million
less than the New York Public
Library).
“You’re getting rid of all these
good, talented, creative people,
who are just trying their best to
serve the community,” said li-
brary assistant Susanne Loh-
kamp, one of at least five staff at
the Woodstock branch who took
early retirement in September to
save the job of a co-worker.
“There was no budgetary reason
for it. To me that’s the ultimate
disservice.”
Oehlke’s justifications for the
cuts left workers perplexed. To
allow for social distancing, each
branch was assigned a maxi-
mum safe capacity, but the staff
limits were calculated based on
the idea of letting a number of
patrons back in, even though
there’s no date set to do that. In
other words: permanent staff re-
ductions now, to create socially
distant space for patrons at some
undetermined time in the future.
“It seems like they’re sitting
on their hands for the sake of say-
ing that their hands are tied,” said
Joe Clement, a union steward at
the Central Library.
After one worker used the li-
brary email system to express
anger and grief over the cuts, the
library’s executive management
team faced an email uprising in
mid-August. Dozens of workers
chimed in via emails sent to all
library staff over the next week,
imploring management to re-
consider. After a week, library
executives limited workers’ lat-
itude to send emails.
Oehlke explained the move to
the Labor Press Sept. 26, saying
staff who didn’t want to be part
of the thread had begun blocking
the all-staff email account.
“We are currently working on
other channels we can create for
that kind of cross-organization
communication, that is ‘opt-in,’”
Oehlke said.
If the cuts wounded, it’s be-
cause many library workers see
these not as jobs, but chosen ca-
reers to which they have a pro-
found, passionate commitment.
“We are an eclectic group of
nerds, book-lovers, and intro-
verts, with a strong community
service ethic,” says library clerk
Gina Greenlaw, one of the work-
ers who had her position elimi-
nated. “The library is kind of like
nirvana for us, for people who
love language and words.”
Greenlaw was placed in a
temporary position through Dec.
31, but suffered a demotion and
a $3.82 an hour pay cut.
To fight the cuts, union stew-
ards and other library workers
created an ad hoc group, Mult-
nomah County Library Workers
United. They set up a web site
and Facebook group, and circu-
lated an online letter signed by as
many as 1,000 people. They got
expressions of support from a
number of prominent figures, in-
cluding Portland author Cheryl
Strayed and Noam Chomsky, the
world-famous linguist and public
intellectual.
The position cuts come at the
same time the library finds itself
unable to meet demand for items
patrons are placing on hold. The
library reopened in June with
system-wide holds curtailed.
Oehlke said that’s because the
area at the Isom Operations Cen-
ter where books are sorted for de-
livery is too small to operate at
full capacity with social distanc-
ing. But Oehlke rejected work-
ers’ calls to add extra hours and
shifts to reduce the backlog.
“The thing that saddens me
the most about these layoffs is
the impact on the community,”
says Kyra Hahn, a librarian
whose position was eliminated.
Kahn moved to Portland from
Denver last November to accept
a position that required Black
cultural competency. Her last day
was Sept. 30.