Library board: Cutting janitor poses health concerns
NORWALK — Alex Knopp is concerned about the potential health impact of not replacing one of the library custodians and says it could even affect whether the buildings fully reopen.
Up until early October, the city’s public library had three full-time custodians divided among its South Norwalk and Belden Avenue locations, according to Knopp, president of the library’s board of directors.
On Oct. 9, two library employees, including one of the full-time custodians and the circulation systems manager, were eliminated as part of an early retirement program offered this year by the city, Knopp said.
Two other positions were set to be eliminated after the employees retired, separate from the retirement package. The non-retirement package positions are a librarian and an assistant librarian, Knopp said.
But Knopp is most concerned about losing the custodian during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Nov. 17, Knopp sent a letter to Lamond Daniels, the city’s chief of community services, on behalf of the library board of directors, petitioning for the custodian position to be reinstated. The letter went unanswered, Knopp said.
“The custodian position is of particular concern during this period of COVID, for the safety of the NPL staff and patrons who use our facilities,” the
letter read. “Unless this position is maintained, I cannot guarantee whether the NPL Board will be able to reopen the libraries to their fullest extent in the future taking into
account our concern for public health issues.”
“The NPL is being asked to absorb a disproportionate share of the city’s staff reductions following the implementation of the early retirement program,” the letter continued. “Whether this would be fair or equitable
under normal circumstances, it certainly is not justifiable if the reduction in cleaning and custodial services might jeopardize public health for staff and patrons.”
The four library positions will be eliminated as part of the city budget for the upcoming fiscal year, but has yet to be approved, Daniels said. When approved, the city budget will go into effect July 1.
“I’m concerned there will not be enough coverage by custodians under the proposed budget,” Knopp said. “It may be that during these pandemic hours, which open the library to individual patrons by appointment, we could find a way to get by with two full-time custodians, as long as we can get some part-time funding restored.”
While Knopp is mainly concerned about the cleanliness of the facilities as a result of the custodial cuts, the Centers for Dis
ease Control and Prevention said areas not frequently touched do not require excessive cleaning or sanitizing and items used by children should not have disinfectant applied.
“Coronaviruses on surfaces and objects naturally die within hours to days,” according to the CDC. “Warmer temperatures and exposure to sunlight will reduce the time the virus survives on surfaces and objects. Normal routine cleaning with soap and water removes germs and dirt from surfaces.”
A total of 19 positions will be eliminated throughout the departments overseen by the community services division, Daniels said.
In addition to the retirement packages and the position eliminations, there will be a reduction in part-time hours for the various departments. However, some part-time hours will still be available for the library and any addi
tional custodial needs will be met by the citywide maintenance department, Daniels said.
“It’s only four positions out of the entire library, that’s not a lot,” Daniels said. “We feel very confident services will continue to be optimal.”
Combined, the four eliminated positions amounted to a $223,798 reduction in the library’s budget, according to city documents.
“It seems like we were cut more, and it was a huge hit,” Sherelle Harris, interim library director, said at the library board’s meeting this month.
Daniels said he consulted the former library director about the cuts before moving forward to ensure the eliminations would not compromise the library’s functionality and safety, and insists no departments were singled out for budgetary cuts.