Library staff in 13 local authorities are balloting for industrial action in a dispute over plans to amalgamate library services on a two or three-county basis. IMPACT says the proposals would threaten service provision as library budgets come under increasing pressure. The decision to ballot followed a meeting of branch and library representatives last month.
The ballots, which are being conducted by local IMPACT branches, close at noon on Friday 1st July, with a national result due to be declared the following Monday. The local authorities affected are Carlow, Cavan, Cork City, Cork County, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Longford, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo and Westmeath.
IMPACT says the proposals, drawn up by a Dublin-based planning group, took little account of local needs and failed to include a cost-benefit analysis. The union says neither staff nor local elected representatives have been properly consulted on the initiative, which has no statutory basis and could herald the end of local decision-making on library services.
There are also concerns over the impact of the proposals on staffing and career structures, and the possible relocation of staff across county boundaries.
A union spokesperson said: “Local libraries are vital social hubs in rural and urban communities that have already lost shops, garda stations, post offices and other local amenities. We can’t allow our thriving library system to be gutted on foot of a remote number-crunching exercise, which doesn’t reflect local needs or the realities of community life.
“The proposed mergers would immediately create gaps in expertise at the highest level in certain counties, and would ultimately lead to reduced library services to the public. There are already many vacant posts in libraries in most counties, which is affecting services and staff morale.”
