Lewiston Public Library is dealing with years of understaffing and budget inadequacy. Even when all positions are filled, the idea that they are “fully staffed” is an illusion.

Part-time employees, who are kept under a specific amount of hours so that they can be paid lower than union rates, are holding the staffing schedule together. They are often the ones on the front lines dealing with the most stressful situations and are severely underpaid.

Full-time library staff who have been working there for years are constantly burnt out and dealing with trauma from situations they are not equipped or trained to deal with. Librarians struggle to get actual library work done because they are spending their time managing staffing issues and addressing patron behavior when there is no building monitor.

Building monitor positions continue to go unfilled, not because the positions are unnecessary, but because they are not being compensated adequately and the job listings do not accurately encompass the library’s needs.

The city needs to provide adequate resources for folks experiencing homelessness, substance use disorder, mental illness, and socioeconomic hardship beyond using the library as a “catch all” social service for unmet needs in the community.

All community members should be welcome in the library. However, library staff are not social workers, are not case workers, are not behavioral health workers, and expecting them to serve as such is unfair to both the library staff and the patrons who have needs the library staff are not equipped to handle.

Harper Chance, Auburn

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