Libraries and COVID-19

This page consists of results from a survey done the week of April 6, 2020 on how public libraries were handing employment and compensation of paid library staff during the COVID-19 driven closures. We received 37 responses across a variety of library sizes.

Responses provided under “Other”

• Two can take personal leave. Three would not be paid unless the federal and state guidelines change that
• All of the above, depending on status and personal leave accruals, and how long this closure lasts.  Right now, most are receiving paid administrative leave.
• All volunteers and staying home by choice
• All volunteers except director whom only gets small contractor pay.
• Doesn't apply since staff is working.
• If this happened, which it is not happening right now, the staff hours would be saved for later when working at the library was possible.  So, the staff would just work more later.
• LWOP
• No other paid.  Only library director is paid and she checks book drop and post office daily.
• Not sure.  It has not come to that point yet.
• Part time workers were given two weeks administrative leave and then unpaid after that.
• Personal leave, emergency paid leave if they quality, emergency paid family medical leave if they qualify, leave without pay
• Staff is unable to go into the library.  Staff is still receiving grant funds for working administratively from home.
• Staff was give 10 days of Admin Leave that they could use if they felt sick or had child care issues because of school closures.  The leave had to be used a whole day at a time.  The option for Admin Leave ended March 31st because of the FFCRA starting April 1st.
• Take personal leave or be furloughed (not a complete layoff, but temporarily not being paid. They can file for unemployment during this time).
• The City has a return to work policy to guide staff, but they can also take PTO.  City policy is that after three days of unapproved absence, a doctor/healthcare provider note is needed.
• We are all volunteers.

Responses offered under “Other”

• Library Board
• University of Alaska Fairbanks

Responses offered

• College President has informed staff that we should not be concerned about layoffs. She is dedicated to keep everyone employed and paid during this pandemic, at this time. (She is due to resign as of July, although has told the Board of Trustees that she is willing to continue working as long as they wish her to).
• I have volunteers only. I have been the only one working mostly on mail, bills and learning how to get a webinar or other program together to reach the few families that have internet. I have been doing webinars.
• One employee had already put in her resignation before the closure, and she has enough telework to do until her last day. We will wait to recruit for her position until things are back to normal. The library director has indefinite work to do during the closure, and the other full time library worker is reassigned to helping with community needs and is sewing masks and delivering food for the Food Bank.
• Yes, we have decided that our librarian can work from home and in the library following social distancing, etc. requirements, but to look at not working the full hours for the month of April since we might need the extra hours when we open again.
• Since the closure, every week has been just dealing with a new norm, a new building plan.  Since April 1st, we have a more stable footing, possibly for the entire month.  We are developing telework for our PT employees, and hope to have that in place by next week.  We will need to discuss sustainability, especially if they keep us closed after 5/1/20.
• Within the Library we've started talking about. Right now the City is concentrating on responding to the pandemic and getting people to hunker down.
• No.  The federal grant, IMLS, so far responded as such.  "It would be helpful if you could review your plan for the year and keep track of how coronavirus is impacting your original plan.  Are there things that will change because of the national crisis?  Will you be required to delay, alter, or cancel any planned activities?"
• Yes. Currently, staff have the option to stay home if they are not able to come to work due to COVID-19 reasons. This is mainly because we are closed. However, our city department will be responsible for food delivery to quarantined, isolated, or homebound community members if that becomes necessary, and in that case, staff will be required to report to work or use personal leave unless they fit into COVID-19 leave categories, such as someone who is caring for a sick family member, awaiting test results, experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, or caring for a child who is school aged and is staying home due to school closures.
• We are waiting to hear what the next steps are - currently closed till April 11.  We feel we can keep providing virtual service but since not all employees are engaged in this work it is hard for many.  No employees have been laid off, but if deemed non-essential and there is no work for them to do from home, they are using leave, or eventually, LWOP.
• This hasn't been discussed per se, but I'm being proactive. I postponed hiring one regular part-time aide position and two seasonal part-time aide positions prior to our closure since the City will lose seasonal revenue this year and I anticipate a long term closure.  I submitted as if we were fully staffed since it was only a matter of timing that we were not. We've developed virtual programming and have plans for more, investing in digital collections and resources, established an open phone hour schedule and update our website as we develop resources.  I also have a role in our EOC and maintain the City COVID-19 webpage.  It's important the community knows we're making full use of our work hours with visible outcomes for our community.  My staff record a daily worklog and I provide regular reports to the City Manager, Council and our community about what we are doing.  We will resume curbside and/or local mail service when we can safely do so with better data regarding the virus stability on surfaces and in the air.
• The city council met last night.  Our hourly staff is working a reduced schedule.  The council decided to pay them for their regular amount of hours.  I think that if we stop coming in altogether that we will continue to be compensated and not use leave but that was not discussed.
• Yes, we feel our arrangements are very safe. We have those in quarantine not making any drop offs until quarantine if over and if they would like materials, we are using a drop point. Those who are just social distancing use a drop box on the landing and we quarantine those materials for 3 days before processing.
• Yes, we have been talking about ways to use the wi-fi so people can still do their taxes, maybe allowing limited entry with one patron at a time using the computer to file taxes. This has been our biggest request.
• Yes, investing in additional digital resources, re-allocating funds to keep the doors open instead of purchasing books, loss of donations and how much that will effect our operations. When the library could re-open. (We are in located in a school building that dictates when we can use the building.)
• no, just concern that workers are finding enough to do from home, and have assignments meaningful to their practice
• Apparently, as part of a general conversation about planning in the Borough, but the Library is not included in those discussions.  Attempts to be included have been deflected.  Also, it should be noted that 2 employees paid to work on site are on reduced hours.
• yes, at this point we are taking turns coming in to keep the heat on as often as possible.
• We are currently under quarantine until April 27, 2020.  Our employees are being paid but this will be revisited when the quarantine is up.
• Staff who can meaningfully telework are teleworking. Not all jobs have this capacity. No one has been laid off yet but there are part-time limited (non-benefited) staff who are not working right now because their jobs were solely direct public service. Some staff are choosing to use leave or emergency leave. We are actively re-assigning library staff to emergency operations - so far staff have been assigned to the public information office and incident command general staff. Staff who are willing may soon be re-assigned to assist with public quarantine and isolation duties. One of our library facilities is actively being used for the incident (call center for mobile screening hotline) although we expect this will change as the technical capacity for this work to be done remotely increases.