Striking staff at Halifax public libraries say current wages aren’t enough to live on

HALIFAX — About three dozen striking workers gathered outside the Halifax Central Library Wednesday, chanting and waving signs to demand better wages.

More than 300 Halifax Public Libraries employees from 14 branches across the city walked off the job Monday after conciliation talks between their employer and their union broke off over the weekend.

Library service adviser Dominique Nielsen was among the crowd at Halifax Central Library, a sprawling glass building in the heart of the city’s downtown area. She is also a secretary with the local branch of the Nova Scotia Union of Public and Private Employees, which represents the workers.

“We take a lot of direction from our members and our members are telling us that they’re struggling,” Nielsen said in an interview.

“Some of our members are telling us they have to choose between paying rent and paying for groceries and medication, and that’s not a choice anyone should have to make.”

The employees’ most recent collective agreement expired in April 2023, and it says librarians make between $59,705 and $68,224 a year, while service support workers — who are the lowest paid employees at Halifax Public Libraries — make between $35,512 and $40,460 annually.

Nielsen said the salaries at Halifax Public Libraries are “miles behind” wages for library workers in the rest of the country.

Negotiations between the union and Halifax Public Libraries stalled after the employer offered to increase salaries by 3.5 per cent in the first year of a new contract, and then by three per cent in each of the next three years, Nielsen said.

The increases would not bring salaries up to a living wage for many workers, she said.

In a statement, Halifax Public Libraries said it acknowledges the union’s concerns about increased living costs, but it believes its final offer is fair.

Nielsen said the cost-of-living crisis has increased workloads and risk for library staff. Libraries are free public spaces, and people with increasingly complex needs rely on them, she said. In response, Halifax libraries have expanded their services to include clinics to help people apply for identification cards, she said. Sometimes libraries also have snacks on hand for people who might need them, she added.

“We’ve become partially like social workers, partially like therapists, partially childcare workers, partially a whole bunch of different responsibilities that were never part of our tradition,” Nielsen said. “Now we’re taking that on in addition to our regular library jobs.”

Workers are also reporting more instances of sexual harassment, violence and abuse from patrons, she said.

In 2023, Halifax Public Libraries reported 214 breaches of customer conduct policy at its facilities, which prohibits disruptive and violent behaviours, defacement of property and solicitation, said spokesperson Laurel Taylor.

Libraries in Halifax have been closed since workers went on strike Monday. Nielsen said she doesn’t know when contract negotiations will resume, but she hopes the facilities will be open again soon.

“Libraries are kind of a lifeline for a lot of the community. They are so alive for community members, especially those who may not have the means to participate in other activities and things that have paywalls,” she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 28, 2024.

Cassidy McMackon, The Canadian Press