Upper Arlington Public Library Workers Win Union Election
A strong majority of staff (79%) at Upper Arlington Public Library (UAPL) voted to form their union, Upper Arlington Public Library United Staff (UAPLUS), in a secret ballot election administered by Ohio’s State Employment Relations Board. The new union, which includes around 90 librarians and library workers, is the fourth group of Central Ohio library workers to successfully organize with the Ohio Federation of Teachers since 2021.
“My coworkers and I voted to form our union because we want our library to thrive and that’s only possible if library workers are treated with respect, compensated fairly, and have a voice in decisions that affect our work,” said Caitlin O’Sullivan, a Cataloger at Tremont Library. “We’re excited to start the contract negotiations process by surveying all members to democratically decide what issues we’ll prioritize at the bargaining table.”
UAPLUS was organized in affiliation with the Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT), who represent nearly 20,000 active and retired public school teachers, charter school teachers, school support staff, higher education faculty and staff, library workers and social work professionals in Ohio. They join librarians and library workers from Worthington Libraries, Grandview Heights Public Library, and Pickerington Public Library who have all joined OFT since 2021.