After receiving general direction from the Executive on proposed themes for CUPE National Resolutions to bring to convention, I created the following which were accepted by both the Executive and CUPE BC:
CUPE NATIONAL WILL:
Lobby the BC provincial government to restore library funding back to at least $17.8 million annually from its currently stagnant level of $14 million annually since the 2009 budget cuts and to restore the provincial budget library line separate from the general education line of the Ministry of Education.
BECAUSE:
Cuts to the Ministry of Advanced Education, Innovation and Technology have added further pressure on Libraries, which now have to try and provide even more technological training, career and job search skills to 360 communities across the Province.
Libraries provide outreach and educational services in urban, rural and remote communities regardless of individual socio-economic status.
Supporting libraries means supporting communities and funding comes from local governments, and also must come from annual per-capita operating grants from the provincial government.
Submitted by CUPE Local 391 Vancouver Public Library Workers
Gerard Batty, President ____________________________
Steven Turner, Secretary-Treasurer ____________________________
CUPE NATIONAL WILL:
Lobby provincial governments without pay equity legislation, and to lobby provincial governments with pay equity legislation restricted only to the Public sector, for more comprehensive compensation based on skills, effort, responsibility, and working conditions based on equal pay for work of equal value.
BECAUSE:
Pay equity legislation recognizes wage discrimination is systemic and not an individual problem.
Pay equity combines human rights with labour and employing organizations to seek compensation solutions proactively rather than by individual complaint orientated actions.
There are no incentives for employers to provide comprehensive pay equity.
Submitted by CUPE Local 391 Vancouver Public Library Workers
Gerard Batty, President ____________________________
Steven Turner, Secretary-Treasurer ____________________________
CUPE NATIONAL WILL:
Continue to lobby on the importance of a professional force of Librarians and their skills, knowledge and experience as educators, facilitators, and sources of community outreach and support for urban, rural and remote communities that cannot be matched by less trained and less paid workers.
BECAUSE:
Budget cuts have made Public and Private sector libraries look to new ways to over work existing librarians or over utilize non-librarians in librarian work over the past 5 years.
Librarians are continually under pressure from other perceived cheaper solutions to their services that are technology based.
Librarians have the training in research skills, technological trends, and people interaction skills that cannot be substituted by technology, or lesser trained and lesser paid workers.
Submitted by CUPE Local 391 Vancouver Public Library Workers
Gerard Batty, President ____________________________
Steven Turner, Secretary-Treasurer ____________________________