Fittingly, the first strike of Rob Ford’s administration affects libraries

Citing threats to job security (and perhaps still stinging from that whole Tim Hortons thing), 2,300 library workers have walked off the job, closing all 98 of Toronto’s branches. Given the widespread backlash over library cuts during Rob Ford’s early efforts to slash spending (and the high-drama spat between Doug Ford and Margaret Atwood), it feels somehow fitting that the administration’s first strike affects libraries. Meanwhile, CUPE Local 79, which represents the city’s inside workers, will hold its own strike vote tomorrow, meaning facilities like swimming pools and daycares could shut as early as Saturday. Despite the prospect of two concurrent walk-outs, we don’t expect the public to get as worked up as they did during the 2009 municipal workers’ strike—after all, students without a place to study don’t tend to pile up and start to stink the way garbage does. Plus, if polls are to be trusted, people really, really like librarians. Read the entire story [Globe and Mail] »

Note: an earlier version of this story contained a logical error with respect to the relative number of Tim Hortons locations and libraries. Toronto Life regrets the error.