By Sheldon Spackman

Pandemic Adjustments

Layoffs part of Red Deer Public Library restructuring

Oct 16, 2020 | 4:55 PM

More than half of the workforce at Red Deer Public Library (RDPL) was laid off earlier this year as the organization navigated through the COVID-19 pandemic.

The layoffs were not publicly announced when they were made.

On May 3, 36 part-time staff, each with less than six years’ seniority, were let go. An additional 14 part-time staff with greater seniority were laid off on June 13.

RDPL CEO Shelley Ross says that of the latter group, 12 have since returned to work for the library in some capacity, while one retired and another chose not to return upon being recalled.

No full-time library staff was laid off.

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At the management level, Ross says one employee who left on maternity leave was not replaced and their duties spread among eight other managers. With most programs and services being offered online due to the pandemic, Ross notes a streamlining of management roles was needed to reflect that change.

“The intent of the change was to function more efficiently as a single organization, not as three quite different branches, and it’s working,” Ross said. “We had a retirement in administration before COVID hit, November, and we moved another admin into that and did not fill the newly vacant position, and last year we converted most of the responsibilities of a full-time management position to a new full-time CUPE position. So from this time last year, we have two fewer administrative employees overall and one away on mat leave, three less in total.”

Ross says they’ve completed a restructuring in which a number of the part-time positions at the library were combined into full-time positions, explaining that they didn’t want to bring back workers without having health benefits.

“Obviously, if they contract COVID at work, I want to be able to pay them sick time if they’re sent home or they’re at home sick. So we’re restructuring those many small hour, part-time positions into full-time position offerings and those have been offered to that laid off group, and of course to all employees by seniority, but primarily to the laid off group.”

The RDPL now employs 23 full-time workers, plus two that are on maternity leave, and 10 part-time, plus two on paid leave and one on unpaid leave.

Deb Isbister, President of CUPE Local 4810 which represents Red Deer Public Library workers, says she appreciates the library’s concern for worker safety but would have liked to have seen fewer layoffs.

“We all know that many organizations have had to adjust to the pandemic, but it seems particularly harsh to terminate over 50 per cent of the staff in an organization that does have the funding to pay them and that provides such an important service, especially when families, schools and our community need it most,” Isbister said.

Isbister feels a more open line of communication would have kept many staff from feeling left in the dark when it came to the layoffs.

“In the absence of any clear or open communication, it is very easy for staff to speculate on motive, as well as to wonder if there is a plan to move forward at all,” she said, also acknowledging that the layoffs were done within the terms of the collective agreement between the library and union.

No grievances were filed by the union over the layoffs.

“We gave the May 3 group notice that, per the collective agreement, anyone not called back before November would have to be terminated. At the same time, we let them know of new full-time opportunities for their consideration,” Ross shared. “But we do not anticipate bringing them back before the terms of the collective agreement force us to terminate them. So the clock starts ticking, there’s nothing I can do about the collective agreement.”

The current collective agreement expires at the end of the year (Dec. 31, 2020). Isbister says the union has notified the library they wish to begin negotiations on a new one.

Ross says their decisions regarding layoffs have been difficult.

“We’re all trying to do our best here. And we have to be responsible for the money given to us by the City and by the Province and we can’t pretend that things aren’t going to be tight. I’m trying to ensure the viability of a 105-year-old organization for the next 100 years, and that requires difficult decisions.”