According to the web site, “the library decided not to take half a million dollars in pay cuts, and instead chose to fire people. We regret this decision.”
Rich Robinson, president of the Dayton Metro Library Staff Association, declined further comment.
Library spokesman Mark Willis said there was no specific vote to reject the union offer or to fire people.
“The library board did not vote on any proposals today. The board declared a “financial exigency” and asked Kambitsch to develop a long-term financial stability plan. He will present it to the board on Sept. 2 at the main library in downtown Dayton.
“The managers and hourly employees are under a one-year pay freeze, but we have not been able to negotiate the same from the staff association,” Willis said.
When cuts would occur is not decided. At this point Kambitsch said his plan will not include closing branches.
The board of trustees met in executive session Friday to discuss union negotiations and possible cuts in service. When the board emerged and declared a “financial exigency” it invoked a section of the union contract that allows positions to be eliminated when there is a significant decline in financial resources.
The library system is about $500,000 short this year due to $4 million in state budget cuts and a $200,000 loss in investment income. State budget cuts for next year are expected to be at least $1.2 million, Willis said.
“With state funding having been cut so dramatically, service cuts are inevitable,” Kambitsch said. “We recognize that everyone else is cutting back and the library must as well.”
Voters are being asked to approve a 1.75 mill replacement levy in November, which will generate $4.6 million more annually than the 1.25 mill it replaces. But “it is not enough to cover the costs of continuing state cuts,” according to a library news release.
The existing levy expires this year, and if the proposed replacement fails, Kambitsch said draconian cuts will be required in January.
In June library officials asked the union to accept a pay freeze. The 280 unionized employees were to receive a 3 percent pay increase July 1, which the union last month agreed to delay pending the outcome of concession negotiations.
The union on Sunday rejected the trustees proposal and made an alternate proposal that included the freeze for the remainder of this year but does not include the library’s request for concessions in 2010 on step increases, longevity bonuses and the loss of one personal day.
The union offer includes a five-day unpaid furlough and reopening concession bargaining in November. The union also called for the library to “promptly implement” a retirement incentive program trustees agreed to in July.
Willis said the problem with the union offer is it only addresses short-term issues, not the long-term financial problem the library faces.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7455 or lhulsey@DaytonDailyNews.com.
About the Author
