Free Library branches are closed amid the DC 33 strike

With the July heat beating down and school out of session, one critical summer refuge is now closed because of the AFSCME District Council 33 city workers strike — the Free Library of Philadelphia.

The Free Library listed nearly all its branches as closed on its website due to the work stoppage as of midday Wednesday. Six branches were closed because of long-standing renovations or cooling issues. The only open branch was the Library of Accessible Media for Pennsylvanians, which is a city-state partnership.

While most librarians are members of a different union, DC 47, the majority of other library workers are members of DC 33. They include custodians, security guards, and other staff who are essential to the libraries’ daily operations.

On Tuesday, the Free Library attempted to consolidate its operations and keep 16 branches open, but DC 47 members cited health and safety concerns about crossing their coworkers’ picket lines and mostly could not report to work. Most branches were not able to open.

“We are redeploying staff who are not in DC33 to open as many libraries as possible, particularly the ones that serve as cooling centers. With picketers blocking entrances, so far only the Library of Accessible Media for Pennsylvanians has been open consistently,” said Free Library spokesperson Mark Graham by email.

Graham confirmed that the strike has also meant the pause of the library’s summer free lunch program for children, taking place at Haverford, Joseph E. Coleman Northwest Regional, McPherson Square, Oak Lane, and Queen Memorial libraries.

Without the striking staff, “there’s absolutely no way to open a library,” said a DC 47 member who wished to remain anonymous out of fear of retaliation.

It’s unclear how long DC 47 will be able to hold out from reporting to work. With a Tuesday injunction that limits picketing, as well as the Free Library telling staff there would be an increased police presence and escorts outside branches with pickets, it may be more difficult for DC 47 members to cite safety concerns about reporting to work. The DC 47 union member said that some branches have already threatened staffers who do not report with discipline or unpaid time off.

“We hoe that with the injunction in place, we can open more libraries,” Graham said.

The 16 branches that the Free Library has sought to open during the strike are:

About two dozen DC 33 members picketed and circled in front of the Central Library on Tuesday, while a smaller group blocked the building’s back entrance.

Dhafir Gerald, a municipal guard at the branch on the Parkway, led the picketing group in a series of chants on a megaphone, battling the heat and humidity with enthusiasm and appreciation for his fellow workers. Gerald, 48, was once incarcerated but started working for the city six years ago. He said he is proud of his work and loves what he does. But he wants to be paid a fairer and more livable wage.

“The city has the money to pay us. We are the backbone of the city,” he said. Gerald makes about $46,000 a year, despite doing work beyond that of a typical security guard. That includes property management tasks and even handling visitors experiencing mental-health problems.

“We try to do everything we can, and we just want to be paid fairly for it,” he said.

Gerald said that a few patrons, including some homeless people looking to use the building as a cooling center, came by the library on Tuesday. But once they saw the pickets, they did not attempt to cross them.

He said that it was “messed up” that they could not come in on such a hot day, but that the work stoppage was necessary.

“Without us, the city doesn’t work,” he said.

This story has been updated to include comment from the Free Library of Philadelphia.