In-depth look: Newark Public Library workers without contract for 11 months after earning city funds

Following a tumultuous few months of meetings and demonstrations, members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 2298, known as the Newark Public Library (NPL) Workers Union, have yet to secure an agreeable contract for almost a year, according to an Instagram post by the union.

The Daily Targum followed the NPL Workers Union's activities for three months. The situation brought to light the struggles faced by urban public library workers.

Newark Public Library system has been long defunded, union data says

In recent years, public libraries like those in Newark have been facing budgeting issues. These constraints, paired with fewer hours, crumbling infrastructure and a series of branch closures, have pushed NPL workers to call for increased wages and an increase in the library's funding, according to a post by the NPL Workers Union.

The City of Newark currently has seven city-funded libraries that collectively serve a population of more than 300,000 people.

The library's funding faced significant cuts under former Mayor of Newark and now Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), according to data from the NPL Workers Union. Before adjusting for inflation, funding sank from $14.5 million in 2007 to $10.1 million in 2014.

Adjusting for inflation translates this to a nearly 40 percent cut. Current Mayor Ras Baraka (D-N.J.), who is now running for governor, allocated approximately $600,000 more to the NPL across his mayoral term. Though when adjusting for inflation, the additional funding turns into a nearly 20 percent cut.

Rutgers alum Karl Schwartz, the vice president of the NPL Workers Union and manager of the NPL's Van Buren Branch, said much of the funding cut stemmed from the 2008 financial crisis, as many other public services faced strict budgeting. Most of their budgets have since been restored, he said.

"But what's interesting about the library is our budget never recovered from that, so it basically permanently shrunk during the time of the financial crisis, and we've been living with the effects of that ever since," Schwartz said.

Library deserts impact vulnerable community members, union officials worry

Since the financial crisis, the NPL has seen four branches close across two neighborhoods — two in Roseville and two in Clinton Hill, according to the NPL's website.

Many community members rely on the NPL system for social support, such as child care, "English as a Second Language" courses and printing services, according to Schwartz and NPL Workers Union President Beth Zak-Cohen, a Rutgers alum and lifelong Newark resident who works in the Charles F. Cummings New Jersey Information Center at the NPL's Main Branch.

Andre Waite, 52 years old and a longtime visitor of the NPL, said he comes to the Main Branch a few times a week to use the computer and read books. He also said he thinks the library has improved over time.

While acknowledging the full-time social workers who work at the NPL, Schwartz said librarians sometimes occupy similar roles.

"We're all working with people who are struggling with things related to poverty and other societal problems, and the library is the only social safety net for a lot of people," he said. "And we're happy to be that social safety net, but we want to see all of our members have a decent quality of life because this can be a very stressful job."

Among the branches that are still open, Schwartz said libraries also struggle with worn-down infrastructure, such as leaky roofs and broken elevators.

"We think everybody in Newark deserves a world-class library system and doesn't deserve a decrepit, falling apart library system that we feel like we have right now," he said.

Workers claim wages insufficient compared to industry recommendations, nearby cities

Snug between bustling Downtown Newark and neighboring University Heights, the NPL's Main Branch sits in a hub of public-serving institutions and spaces, including Rutgers—Newark, the Newark Museum of Art and Harriet Tubman Square.

"Library workers should not also have to be delivery drivers, concession staff and/or baristas to survive," Schwartz read off a sign at a Wednesday protest in front of the Main Branch before initiating a chant that "one job is enough."

The NPL Workers Union found that NPL employees fall almost $20,000 short of the living wage for childless singles in the New York City Metropolitan Area. One library worker held up a sign indicating that despite working full-time at the NPL for 20 years, they only make $31,000 a year.

Kalina Birbalsingh, a library assistant at the NPL's Main Branch, said she thinks no one at the NPL is adequately compensated, and in more than two years working in the position, she has noticed resources and events get cut.

"We don't have the funding to buy new books, and that's a majority of what a library does," she said. "And so, that's sad to see."

Many union members struggle to afford rent, groceries, credit card debt and other bills with their current salaries, according to Schwartz. In the face of a 44 percent increase in health care costs, current NPL wages are unsustainable, even after raises, he said.

Full-time public or academic librarians must also typically possess a master's degree in library sciences despite low salaries relative to the local cost of living. In the case of urban public libraries, workers may also serve patrons troubled by societal ills such as poverty, substance abuse or homelessness, which journalist Jennifer Howard wrote about in her 2019 article, "The Complicated Role of the Modern Public Library."

"We are the poor person's university, the poet's furnace and the titanium crowbar that anyone can reach for to lift themselves out of a morass and into greatness," NPL Director Christian Zabriskie told the Newark City Council at a budget hearing in August.

But the NPL, in particular, falls far behind in compensation. Compared to neighboring Jersey City, which has a similar population and rate of economic disparity, the NPL Workers Union found that workers at the Jersey City Free Public Library make between 20 and 33 percent more on average than NPL workers do for the same job title, according to an Instagram post by the union.

NPL workers' salaries were also found to be between 19.8 and 56.2 percent lower than minimum wage suggestions set by the New Jersey Library Association, the union posted.

"Nobody works at a public library to get rich," Schwartz told the Targum. "We do this because we're passionate about the communities we work in — we like the work, but all we're asking for is enough to make a living wage."

NPL Workers Union moves in numbers amid meeting mishaps

In response to Zabriskie's call for funding at the August 13 budget hearing, Councilman Carlos Gonzalez expressed a willingness to cooperate with the union but noted that it may not be able to meet the entirety of the union's initial bid of approximately $2.5 million.

After more than 100 union members and allies protested in front of Newark City Hall on September 5, some remaining members spoke at another city budget hearing that same day.

Schwartz presented multiple hypothetical scenarios before the City Council describing what the NPL's branches might look like with increased funding.

For example, all branches of the NPL are closed on Sundays, and all except the Main Branch are closed on Mondays. Schwartz, who works at the Van Buren Branch, called upon council members to strive toward funding that would allow the libraries to stay open seven days a week.

He also discussed the potential impacts on the local community, including working families, unhoused individuals and newcomers to the city who may need a space to work remotely.

"Imagine if we could keep our branches open on Mondays … especially during the summer when we do a free lunch program," Schwartz said at the hearing. "Kids can only get those free lunches Tuesday to Friday, and that's just because we don't have the staff (and) we don't have the money to stay open Monday to Saturday."

Moujan Moghimi, a School of Arts and Sciences junior at Rutgers—Newark, also advocated on behalf of the union, explaining their local library's positive impacts after their family immigrated to the U.S. during their youth.

Another speaker at the September 5 hearing spoke out against a statement made by Council President and now Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-10), who told Zabriskie to "get creative" in acquiring revenue for the NPL system. The speaker suggested the Council reallocate some funds from the Newark Police Department to the NPL.

"There are things that you all can do other than 'get creative,'" they said to the Council. "What? It's not the library's job to get creative — they're a line item in the budget."

Union members then set their sights on a city budget meeting on September 25, which got postponed to September 27. It was at this meeting that the union secured more than $1 million from the city.

The union convened outside the library again on Wednesday because the division of the additional funding has yet to be determined by the NPL's Board of Trustees, and NPL workers have not been met with a satisfactory contract, the NPL Workers Union explained. Zak-Cohen said the board promised to respond with a contract two weeks after receiving city funding, but at the time of the protest, it had been six weeks with one offer.

Despite the postponement of the meeting to December 5 — which was initially canceled less than four hours before the original meeting time — union members chanted outside the Main Branch for 30 minutes, where they were met by car honks of support along Washington Street. Regarding the cancellation of the meeting, Schwartz said the union is open to working with any parties who are willing to cooperate toward increasing their wages.

In the context of an upcoming second presidency under President-elect Donald J. Trump and potential book bans, the matter is increasingly pressing, according to Schwartz.

"I hope we've defied the stereotype that librarians are all quiet people with their heads in books all day because we're out here in the community organizing," he said at the September 5 budget hearing.