Letter to the editor

On March 23, Concordia celebrated the completion of the final phase of the Webster Library Transformation project with great fanfare. Quebec’s Minister for Higher Education and Concordia administrators spoke of the significant government funding for the project and of the university’s commitment to the fundamental role of the library in support of world-class teaching and research. After enduring three years of renovations, students, staff and faculty can now enjoy amazing new study spaces and cutting-edge technology.

Not mentioned at the event, however, was that during this same period library staff have been forced to take a major pay cut, the direct result of the same Liberal government’s new pension bill and Concordia’s management priorities.

The library’s transformation can never be complete without real investment in staff. Our union’s collective agreement expired many months ago. It is time for the university to make a commitment to collective bargaining and to finally acknowledge the contributions of support staff to Concordia’s next-generation library.

Kent Cluff

President, Concordia University Library Employees Union (CULEU)

 

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