NEW: Providence Community Library Lays Off All 65 Employees
Friday, May 27, 2011
Facing an impasse over the use of its library facilities, the Providence Community Library today issued layoff notices to all of its 65 employees – union and nonunion – in accordance with the notification requirement in the staff union’s contract.
While Providence Community Library (PCL) remains hopeful of a resolution of the dispute over the Providence Public Library’s refusal to transfer the neighborhood library branches to the City of Providence, union rules necessitated that PCL give its employees 30 days’ notice of a potential layoff.
Battle over transfer of library buildings
“It is with deep regret that we issued layoff notices today to our dedicated team of administrators and staff, who’ve provided exemplary services to the people of Providence,” said Marcus Mitchell, president of the PCL’s Board of Directors. “We find ourselves in this intractable position only due to the Providence Public Library’s stubborn refusal to live up to its pledge to transfer the library buildings to the City. It’s shameful that our staff and our library patrons must now bear the brunt of this uncertainty.”
The City of Providence’s two-year lease of the neighborhood libraries from the Providence Public Library expires on June 30. Despite continuing pressure from city and state leaders and library supporters, the Providence Public Library has failed to negotiate in good faith with the City to transfer title or ownership of buildings, according to representatives of the PCL, adding that it had pledged to do two years ago when the City took over management of the city’s neighborhood libraries and selected PCL to operate the system.
Commitment to nine community libraries "is unwavering."
“Our commitment to running nine community libraries is unwavering, and we remain hopeful that this situation will be resolved and that our staff and our library services will remain intact,” Mitchell said. “We commend Providence Mayor Angel Taveras and the Providence City Council for their ongoing support and steadfast determination to resolve this impasse and ensure that the residents of Providence continue to have access to the library services they need and deserve.”
PCL has successfully operated the neighborhood libraries on the City’s behalf for the last two years, running an efficient and under-budget system while at the same time significantly increasing community and library programs and boosting the number of patrons.
