UNISON members working in Hampshire libraries were due to strike on Thursday, March 29 and Friday, March 30, following a massive vote in favour of action to defend their jobs and maintain a quality library service. But, while other colleagues forced library closures, Alton was expected to buck the trend and stay open. Union members are angry over a proposal by Hampshire County Council that would see radical restructuring of the service, resulting in the loss of 27 posts and pay cuts of around £4,500 for a further 17 staff. They view the cuts as part of a "de- professionalisation" of the service, since the staff to go would be qualified librarians. Some will stay but, according to Unison, will have to apply for non-qualified jobs at a lower rate of pay. Unison spokesman Steve Squibbs said: "What management are proposing will not just affect library staff, but will have a drastic impact on the standard of service that Hampshire residents receive. "These cuts will mean a reduction in the levels of professional staffing by a massive 76 per cent in just three years – to say that members of the public won't notice any difference is living in cloud cuckoo land." In pointing out that librarians currently deliver "a huge range of activities" to meet the needs of local communities across Hampshire, which will be lost if staff time is cut, Mr Squibbs added: "The real tragedy is that management seems to be doing their utmost to squander the knowledge, skills and experience that librarians have developed over years of service." In a statement on Wednesday, March 21, HCC's executive member for recreation and heritage Margaret Snaith said: "It is disappointing UNISON have felt the need to call a strike. We do not know how many staff will choose to strike yet and will endeavour to maintain a service in all of our 54 libraries. "The potential closures of libraries, is exactly what we are trying to avoid. It has been a very difficult budget process and the service has to live within its means. When we announced the restructure, which we had to do to reduce costs, we explained we would do everything we could to minimise the need for any compulsory redundancies and, following a request for voluntary redundancies, we are confident that no compulsory redundancies will be required. "I would like to apologise for any disruption library users may experience during the strike and hope that the bulk of our staff will continue to support us as we go through this period of change."
