History room to have same level of staffing, library says
Saskatoon Public Library officials say an ongoing restructuring that has caused deep uncertainty among some employees won’t adversely affect the library’s only special collection, which chronicles Saskatoon’s 134-year history.
The Frances Morrison Central Library’s local history room will have the same staff level after the organizational change is complete — two full-time equivalent positions, according to the SPL’s director of public services.
The local history co-ordinator position, which was axed in response to provincial budget cuts this spring, will also be replaced with a digital and special collections librarian under the new structure, Beth Cote said in an interview.
“What we would be looking for is having two full-time people who are dedicated to that (collection), who have experience in archives and understand special collections in public libraries,” Cote said.
“And then there would be a larger number than we have now who are trained to be able to help people find materials in local history. What we have now are those three (full- and part-time) people who are only there during restricted hours.”
Established in 1967 by former chief librarian Frances Morrison, the local history room contains thousands of books, documents, photographs and other records. In her 2011 history of the library, Turning Back the Pages, Ruth Millar described it as a “priceless treasure trove.”
Announced in November 2016, the restructuring is aimed at creating what the SPL calls a “community-led service model.” It is expected to result in most of the organization’s roughly 260 unionized workers having to reapply for similar positions under the new structure.
The union representing them, Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 2669, contends that the library has not provided “any real solid answers” about how the library’s organizational restructuring will affect the local history room and its employees.
“It hold(s) so much information (and) it requires specialized knowledge to be able to bring that information to people, and so we do have concerns about making sure that we can deliver the information that people need,” CUPE Local 2669 president Pamela Ryder said.
Millar, who spent 35 years working for the library, including 15 as head of local history, questioned the administration’s stated plan to create “new flexible roles” for employees. She said her experience suggests that the local history collection can only be managed by experts.
Cote said two recent retirements in the local history room may have stoked concerns about the collection’s future and that no changes have been made to the department. Library CEO Carol Cooley added that the only plan is to make local history more accessible.