Wake County Public Library (WCPL) workers and supporters rallied outside a county commission meeting Tuesday evening to protest what they say is chronic understaffing within the library system. Workers say recent reductions to a staff that was already stretched thin has hurt morale and caused services like family storytimes, job help appointments, and offsite events to be scaled back.
“We’ve been struggling to keep the same level of service going … over the past year,” librarian and Wake Library Workers United member Zac Morgan told the group of 40 Wake County library workers, patrons, and volunteers gathered outside the Wake County Commons building in Raleigh. “I think we’ve done a good job of that, because we’re total badasses when it comes to what we do, but I know it’s wearing a lot of people out.”
Wake Library Workers United, a chapter of the North Carolina public service workers union UE Local 150, organized the rally. The union argues WCPL has not meaningfully expanded its staff in the last decade, even as the county’s population has shot up by about 30%. To make matters worse, over the last couple years WCPL cut so-called “temporary staff” hours by 30% across the system.
WCPL has about 600 employees across 23 libraries, a mix of “temporary” and “permanent” staff. The temporary staff “help cover operational gaps created by vacancies, employee leave and permanent staff assignments to committees or special projects,” according to a Wake County spokesperson.
On Tuesday, library workers told INDY these staffers fill essential, customer-facing roles. They may not be librarians in the official, degree-holding sense, but many patrons don’t know the difference. (After this story published, Wake County sent additional responses to the INDY’s request for comment noting the county has added 50 full-time equivalent library employees compared with ten years ago and had fewer visitors. The spokesperson also stated temporary staff hours were cut after costs ran over-budget and that WCPL is on track to have unused temporary staffing funds this fiscal year.)
In a press release from the union ahead of the rally, Wake librarian Maura Dixon likened the inadequate staffing levels to “breathing only through a straw.”
According to the press release, 215 WCPL employees signed a petition last fall calling attention to the staffing crisis. The union says library management refused to meet with them to discuss the petition and potential solutions.
In response to questions from INDY, Wake County shared a statement from WCPL Director Tammy Baggett that reads, in part, “library leadership recognizes that some employees have expressed concerns about workload and staffing levels.”
Baggett wrote that the library is conducting staff surveys and focus groups to better understand employees’ grievances.
Morgan said that’s a good start, but it doesn’t address WCPL’s immediate staffing needs.
“The staffing survey is something that we have been asking for for quite some time,” he said. “We do think that’s a step in the right direction, but … any sort of data gathered from that will not be actionable for at least another year or two. We’re asking for a stopgap measure for staffing this coming year.”
Baggett did not directly address the allegation that she and other WCPL management have refused to meet with the library union. She granted that temporary staff hours were cut this year due to a lack of funding, but said the library system still managed to serve 11,000 additional program participants year-over-year, and “average attendance per program increased significantly.”
Morgan said Baggett’s statement proves the union’s point.
“We have new types of programs and new services being offered with the same level of staff, if not less staff, year after year,” he said. “That is the breaking point that we’re reaching here.”
During the rally, community supporters shared their deep appreciation for Wake’s libraries and library workers.
“I’ve raised my kids through the libraries,” said Steve Bader, a Cary resident. “I brought them to the library all the time. From the time they were one year old … library workers were working with them, reading them stories even when they couldn’t fully understand. … What’s happening now with the reduction in staff makes it harder and harder and harder for the workers to give that kind of service.”
Carlos Perez, a high school history teacher in Durham, said he relies on libraries for teaching and for parenting. “We’re all under attack in various ways, whether it’s the libraries or public schools,” Perez said. “If we’re going to push back, we’ve got to lock arms and push together.”
Tuesday’s rally preceded a public hearing on the county budget with the full Wake County Board of Commissioners in attendance. During the hearing, several library workers spoke about the need for more staff.
Nicky Curtis, an employee at Oberlin Regional Library in Raleigh, described how, with fewer temporary staff, the remaining permanent staff have to spend more time on desk duty and less time on programming. According to Curtis, Oberlin Regional reduced its weekly storytimes from 12 to eight and now only offers one-on-one job and technology appointments two days a week instead of five.
The library workers didn’t ask the county commissioners for a specific dollar amount, but they urged them to find more money in the county budget for Wake’s libraries. That’s a tall order right now: The commissioners are dealing with a revenue shortfall of about $30 million caused by a property tax loophole and an unusually high number of property tax appeals. They are already planning to raise taxes to make up the lost revenue, and there isn’t much room in the budget for additional investments.
The county commissioners will vote on the budget on June 1. Residents can submit their feedback online or at the next public hearing.
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