Shileen Shaw started working for the Newark Public library system in 1990 as a page at the age of 16. Thirty-five years later, she is now a library assistant focused on youth programs, and loves her job.
But she has been working with stagnant wages for over a decade and without a new contract from city management for close to two years. And she’s not alone. The rest of her colleagues in the Newark Library system are in the same situation.
“The administration has gotten progressively worse when it comes to valuing its library workers. This most recent contract negotiation has been the worst. They won’t budge on anything – won't even consider it,” Shaw said.
Shaw is a longtime member of Local 2298 (AFSCME New Jersey), which represents library assistants and associates, librarians, clerks, information technology (IT) and maintenance workers at Newark Public Library. Their last contract expired on Dec. 31, 2023.
Since then, Shaw and her fellow members have banded together to demand a fair contract that delivers a living wage and keeps up with the pace of inflation.
Just pay us a living wage, workers say
At the beginning of this contract fight, according to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, a living wage for the New York City metro area was roughly $58,000 for a single person. But a significant number of the workers, some with decades of experience, make below $40,000, and some as little as $32,000.
The local’s president, Beth Zak-Cohen, identified the key issue behind receiving fair pay – abysmal funding of the library system as a whole.
“The library budget has decreased by 25% since 2007, and 48.6% with inflation. It is currently underfunded by as much as $10 million. This has left more than 50% of our members making below the standard living wage in our area,” Zak-Cohen explained.
More funding, but no pay raises
She led the local’s members in organizing rallies outside Newark City Council and packing city budget hearings to testify and demand full funding for the library. This pressure campaign, which received tremendous public support, resulted in Newark City Council increasing the public library budget by almost $1.1 million on Sept. 7, 2024.
It was a huge win for the workers. However, despite this budget increase, the city didn’t offer workers higher pay during contract negotiations.
Members of Local 2298 argue the city has little excuse not to pay them a living wage. They seek compensation in accordance with the salary guidelines set by the New Jersey Library Association (NJLA), so the local doesn’t continue losing talented staff to higher-paying library systems. For some titles, workers say their pay is way less compared to the NJLA’s guidelines – less than half in one instance.
“We are proud of the work we do and want to continue serving our community. Unfortunately, many of us are struggling to survive under rising rents and health care costs. Many of us work multiple jobs just to make ends meet and our paychecks are not keeping up. We know that we deserve better,” said Zak-Cohen.
The state gets involved
The salary bumps the city offered would bring the Newark library workers up to just the NJLA minimums, which the workers believe isn’t enough.
The stalemate over the contract has moved to the state of New Jersey’s arbitration process. The workers are waiting for the state to assign a mediator to resolve this issue.
Shaw echoed many of her co-workers when she said, “We’re not asking to be rich. We don’t work at the library to get rich. We do it because we love it, and people in our town need the library and the programs it provides.”