Local 1482 Brooklyn Library Guild

Following Martin Luther King Jr. Day and President Donald Trump’s Inauguration

1/22/2025

One of the definitions of the word “union” in Merriam Webster’s online dictionary is “a combining or coalition of parts or members … a confederation of independent individuals for a common purpose.” Local 1482 is such a coalition. Brooklyn Public Library workers coming together to uphold our employee rights. After taking time off to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we should continue to remember that there is more which unites us as union members than what separates us. The Executive Board will continue to do our best to unify union workers across the library system and to protect the rights of workers from abuse.

Worker solidarity can also go beyond that of Brooklyn Public Library or DC 37. Besides supporting each other, the Executive Board would like to encourage our union siblings to participate in labor actions across the New York-area. You can check out Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations’s LABOR ACTION TRACKER to find local strikes and labor protests. Encouragement and support comes in all forms.

When we stand together, we stand strong.

In solidarity,

Local 1482 Executive Board

"NYC Labor for Harris Rally - Weds Oct 23"

10/21/2024

DC 37 Battleground Bus Trips - Oct 5 and 19

10/3/2024

AFSCME Convention Resolutions Report

9/17/2024

Local 1482 Delegates to the 2024 AFSCME Convention in August. From left: Ann Joseph, Melissa Morrone, Antonia Bramble, George Olken. Kneeling: Dee Bowers

Last month our delegates attended the AFSCME Convention in Los Angeles. We will have a full report at our Local General Membership Meeting on Monday October 7th at 7pm on Zoom (postcard in the mail).

One function of the Convention is to vote on resolutions. These are policy and value statements created by members that will shape the International Union's priorities over the next two years. This year, many resolutions focused on the upcoming Presidential Election: Democratic VP Candidate Tim Walz spoke in-person at the Convention and Kamala Harris sent a video message. Here are a complete list of the resolutions that the delegate body voted to pass:

AFSCME Convention Resolutions 2024

Two of the resolutions that did not pass addressed Israel-Palestine and Union Democracy, respectively. The first failed resolution called for the union to take a more forceful stand regarding Israel, including asking AFSCME to join other unions to pressure the Biden Administration to end U.S. Military Aid to Israel. The second failed resolution called for a one-member-one-vote system for choosing our top union leadership. Currently, delegates vote as representatives of the rank-and-file and they re-elected AFSCME President Lee Saunders and Secretary-Treasurer Elissa McBride, who both ran unopposed. You can read more about these efforts in The Chief:

AFSCME activists' reform push falls short

Local 1482 Votes on Motion

6/26/2024

On June 24, 2024, after thoughtful debate members of Brooklyn Library Guild Local 1482 voted 34 to 16 (with 4 abstaining) to adopt the following motion:

Local 1482 will defend Brooklyn Public Library workers who are perceived to support Palestinian liberation in their personal expression and/or during workplace activities. We protect BPL workers from retaliation for expressing and acting on their commitment, aligned with the professed social justice values of DC 37, AFSCME and ALA, to fight for a more just and equitable world. This statement will be posted on the Local's website and distributed to the membership in whatever way the Executive Board sees fit.

General Membership Meeting on June 3rd

6/3/2024

There is a General Membership Meeting for Local 1482 scheduled tonight, Monday, June 3rd at 7:00 pm. It will be held virtually over Zoom. The agenda and login information is found below. Apologies if you are receiving this information on Tuesday morning via an email update. We understand it is out-of-date, and we look forward to your being able to participate in future meetings and actions:

General Membership Meeting
Monday, June 3, 2024
7:00 pm
This meeting will be held virtually on Zoom. The meeting agenda and login information is found below:

Local 1482 Brooklyn Library Guild
GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING

AGENDA
1. Guest Presentations
- Danny Tovar - DC 37 Housing Unit
- Juan Fernandez - Local 154
2. Open Forum
3. Minutes
4. Treasurer’s Report
5. President’s Report
6. New Business

Join Zoom Meeting: bit.ly/Local1482June2024

Or dial in: 929-205-6099 (NY)
Meeting ID: 815 3526 4938
Passcode: 234251

Services for Camille Francis

5/28/2024

Below is information about the memorial services for union member Camille N. Francis. Our hearts are broken at her loss. Please send blessings and strength to her coworkers at Paerdegat Branch, to her friends across the library, and to her family.

Services
Guarino Funeral Home,
9222 Flatlands Avenue,
Brooklyn, NY 11236
Date: Friday, May 31, 2024, 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Repast
Grace Reform Church
1800 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11225
Following the service

Burial
Rosehill Cemetery
Linden, NJ
Date: Saturday, June 1, 2024,

Donations and expressions of sympathy mailed to:
Renee Francis
83 Kenilworth Place
Brooklyn, NY 11210

Expressions of sympathy may be mailed to:
Coleen Grant
1352 E 105 St
Brooklyn NY 11236

Library Workers From Underrepresented Groups Are Invited to Participate in a Research Study on Work Routines

5/19/2024

Local 1482 Vice President for Librarians Rakisha Kearns-White is on the advisory team for a research project being conducted by the University of South Carolina’s School of Information and Communications. The Public Library Routines Project (PLRP), aims to uncover problematic routines in public libraries and learn how they impact staff; find out how staff cope with these routines; and discover successful workarounds that would become the basis of professional development workshops for public library administrations.

Members of the PLRP advisory team are inviting public library staff from across the country to participate in our research of routine work. If you work in a public library in any capacity (librarians, custodians, clerical, safety officers, maintainers, TRS, IT, etc.) and you are from a group that is underrepresented in the profession (e.g., staff of color, LGBTQIA+ staff, staff with disabilities, staff with chronic conditions, and staff with mental health challenges), we especially want to hear from you. READ MORE

Here's the 411:

What’s a Routine? Routine work is. . . well . . . routine! These are the things you do regularly, and you do it mostly the same way each time. This might include shelving, processing holds, programming, working the reference desk, assisting patrons with technology or HR paperwork.

What’s wrong with Routines? While there is nothing inherently wrong with routines, this work might introduce barriers that are particularly problematic for staff with certain identities, e.g., staff of color, LGBTQIA+ staff, staff with disabilities or chronic conditions, staff with mental health challenges. As the routine is repeated and becomes more familiar, it can easily hide and “normalize” these barriers.

What is PLRP? PLRP is a 3-year IMLS-funded research project that looks at these problematic routines, what library staff do to work around them, and what libraries can do to better support staff efforts.

What will you do? You will be asked to keep an audio diary of your experiences in routine work and sit for a 45-minute interview. Everything will be done virtually.

Will anyone know that I participated? Your participation in this research study is entirely confidential. This means that no one outside of the project team will know that you participated. In published project documents, we will remove your name and any information that could potentially link you to your participation in the study.

What do I get out of it? There are no direct benefits to you, but you will receive a $30 gift card at the conclusion of the study.

What if I change my mind? You are free to leave the study at any point and receive a prorated gift card.

I’m interested. What now? Complete THIS FORM to indicate your interest in participating in the study and complete a brief demographics survey. This survey will be used to screen participants and ensure a diverse sample. If you are selected to participate, the next step is a 25-minute virtual meeting with the project team that will further explain your involvement and answer any questions you may have. A project team member will contact you if you are selected to participate. Check out the project WEBSITE HERE. For questions, contact the PI, Darin Freeburg ([email protected]).

Budget Advocacy Read-In & Storytime on May 19th

5/15/2024

Click on either image to get a printable PDF of the event flyers in English and Spanish

If the people can't go to the library on a Sunday, the library must go to the people!

Join community members for a family-friendly storytime outside of the Brooklyn Public Central Library. Before budget cuts in 2023 forced Sunday closures, libraries in every borough hosted Sunday storytime every weekend. Like community groups across the city, we'll be making up for the social services cut by Mayor Adams, hosting storytime and craft activities, and writing letters to Adams to call on him to fully restore the library budget.

REGISTER HERE

Updates: Unions and Workers advocate for Library Funding & DC37 Moves Temporarily

5/12/2024

We are taking this opportunity to share two pieces of news with our members.

City Library Unions Speak Out Against Budget Cuts
The Chief, a New York based newspaper that focuses on municipal workers, recently published an article that addresses the impact the Mayor's proposed budget cuts will have on staffing and maintaining services. Titled Cuts Could Trim Libraries' Saturday Service, the article notes that if enacted, the cut will eliminate Saturday service at at number of locations and will force the libraries to continue not hiring to fill vacancies.

The presidents of the three library local unions were interviewed in the article, including President George Sarah Olken of Local 1482. President Olken spoke about the consequences being closed on Sundays has already had on library workers and library users. Also interviewed was Lauren Comito, a member of Local 1482 and the executive director of Urban Librarians Unite.

DC37 to Temporarily Move Headquarters
DC 37 has announced that effective May 20th, its headquarters will move from 55 Water Street to a temporary service center located at 420 W 45th Street in Manhattan. In the Fall, DC37 will re-open at 125 Barclay St in a new state-of-the-art facility.

Also on May 20th, the Audiology Center will resume operations at the DC37 Health Center located at 115 Chambers Street.

Please look here for hours for the temporary service center, as well as phone contact information.

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