Honk if you love reading

[intertext]

For two days in a row now, I have driven by my closest branch library on my way home from outings with Robinson. Both times, I spotted two rather forlorn looking picketers, and both times I honked loudly and waved. The picketers beamed at me and waved back. I don't think they're getting much of that, which is unfortunate.

I would exhort all the locals on my flist to follow my example, were it not for the fact that except for wendymc I think none of you has a car! Somehow it wouldn't surprise me if lidocafe had not been down there with hot chocolate and oranges, though.

For those on my flist who are NOT local, and have no clue what I'm talking about, and especially for those two or three who are librarians, you will be interested to know that our library staff is locked out. They have been in negotiations with the city for wage equity for months and got nowhere. Among their minor job actions has been a refusal to collect fines, and the city is using lost revenue (!!!) from this as an excuse to lock them out.

I'm not normally very political, but this issue really gets me steamed. The wage imbalance (a parking lot attendant makes more money per hour than the person who checks out books in the library) stems more from gender issues than anything else - library workers are more likely to be female than are parking lot attendants, road workers etc, and I think the city is banking on the fact that the public will get pissed off fairly quickly if they are unable to access the library. I hope people will keep up the solidarity, but I can imagine frazzled mothers with young children wanting books and videos, or seniors, or those who just need a place to go for company or to stay warm, beginning to lose patience with having their libraries closed down.

I shall try and drive by a branch every day and honk and wave.

Comments

[wendymc.livejournal.com]

Well, I will be brave and honest here, and say that I feel slightly differently than you do. I don't think you can ever pick two jobs at two locations and compare them fairly, especially if they do different tasks and have different risks. I think a parking lot attendant job is much more dangerous and less interesting than working in a library. I also dislike this becoming a gender isue, as there are female parking lot attendants, and there are male library workers, and neither job specifically excludes one gender over another. I don't think it's fair to say that because females prefer one job over another, that they are discriminated against because that is a lower paying job, when their male coworkers get the same pay they do, in the same position.

I know that comparasins have been made between technical positions at the library and system administrator positions with the city, but the jobs likely do have differing skill levels. As well, they aren't comparing the library wages to the position at, say, Camosun College, where the difference would be far smaller. Doing the same position I do here would absolutely pay more at UVic, I have seen the numbers, but for a multitude of reasons I choose to stay where I am. I don't think it would be reasonable to demand my wages be increased, because a similar position at a comparable institution are far greater.

All that said, I understand that promises were made and not kept, and that I think is wholely unfair. I support that the union is fighting for their right to fair treatment, and standing up for what they believe in. I think it is good that they have the support of the union, and the ability to fight for fair treatment. I'm just a little unhappy with the marketing and impression they're trying to give on gender issues and unfair pay levels.

(I do own a car but Magnus uses it to get to work and taxi the kids to daycare, so I'm bussing it or biking most days ;)

[lidocafe.livejournal.com]

Yay for this post.

Writing for other reasons, though. My son left a message on my machine at work that my daughter-in-law might be in labour. I have to teach a class, run downtown to the bank, then go to the lawyer (also downtown) and pay for my condo today. If they really need me to, though, I might go the the hospital after that. I'll call your home number from downtown with an update, so be sure to check. It may be a false alarm.