Penn Libraries United have successfully negotiated an agreement with the University and are set to hold their union election in August.
Credit: Abhiram JuvvadiFollowing an effort to unionize that began in June, Penn Libraries staff have successfully negotiated an agreement with the University and are set to hold their unionization election in August.
The elections, which will take place on Aug. 7 and 8 in Van Pelt Library, come after the University did not initially voluntarily recognize Penn Libraries United — which first filed to unionize on June 21. A hearing with the National Labor Relations Board resulted in an agreement with the University establishing that library workers would create a new contract with Local 590 — the chapter that currently unionized workers at Penn Libraries are part of.
“Historically, the union had success reaching fair and collaborative agreements with the University,” Yvonne Harris, the day building supervisor at Penn Libraries and president of Local 590, told The Daily Pennsylvanian. “However, over the last few years, the labor management relationship has declined.”
According to organizers, Penn initially refused to allow Penn Libraries United to join the existing unionized unit of library staff. However, after the hearing, the group has been permitted to create a new contract.
"The NLRB announced that Penn library workers will vote on whether to create a new contract with AFSCME Local 590," a University spokesman wrote in a statement to the DP. "The election will be held on August 7 and 8 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Van Pelt Library Vitale II Media Lab. Penn encourages all who are eligible to vote in the election."
Cassandra Hradil, a digital humanities specialist on a four-year term-limited position said that term-limited positions “don’t really provide an environment where people can grow and feel that they can stay.”
“It doesn’t make you feel appreciated as a worker to know that the University won’t even make you a permanent hire,” she added.
Librarian for Education Joanna Thompson emphasized that benefits of a union would include transparency with pay and support.
“I realized through conversations with my colleagues that I was not being paid anything close to what many of my peer colleagues were making,” she said. “I had to fight pretty hard in order to get the pay that I deserved.”
Penn Libraries United has garnered support both on and off campus. Thompson stated that the solidarity among the library staff has been bolstered by the broader union wave at Penn, which includes graduate student workers, resident advisors, and Penn Medicine residents. Additionally, local politicians and organizations including the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO, City Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) have voiced their support.
As Penn Libraries United prepares for the upcoming election, Thompson added that the optimism among library workers is palpable.
“It is encouraging to finally possibly bring together all union eligible staff under one local,” Harris said. “We all have the right to expect equitable wages and benefits, a fair and transparent promotion process, a voice in our working conditions and a sense of job security. If we’re important enough that Penn needs to hire us, then we deserve the conditions that will allow us to stay here.”
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