Winnipeg librarians were worried about growing violence before fatal stabbing, union says
'There's a systemic problem there of violence in the workplace that they're subject to'
The union for Winnipeg's librarians tried to sound an alarm about an increase in violence and weapons just days before a man was fatally stabbed at the city's downtown Millenium Library, a union official says.
Gord Delbridge, president of CUPE Local 500, the union that represents 5,000 City of Winnipeg workers, said he sent an urgent letter to the mayor and city officials last week, calling for a meeting to address the safety concerns.
"Something has to be done. We're at the point now where we're no longer asking, now we're demanding," he told CBC News.
Officers were called to the library, at Donald Street and Graham Avenue, just after 4:30 p.m. Sunday. A man was rushed to hospital in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead.
Police have not said if the stabbing occurred inside or outside the library. Three boys, aged 14 to 16, have been arrested and charged.
The union on Monday filed a grievance against the city over unsafe work conditions, Delbridge said.
"They're shooken up. They go to work to be a librarian. There's a systemic problem there of violence in the workplace that they're subject to, that they shouldn't be subject to," he said.
"The employer's got a legal responsibility to provide a safe work environment. We can see that is not happening."
Last week there was a group of people causing a disturbance at the Millennium Library and someone pulled out a hatchet, Delbridge said. The police service's heavily armed tactical team was called in.
It also prompted the letter from the union to the city, Delbridge said.
"They [librarians] shouldn't have to be dealing with this. They took on the role to serve the public as a librarian and don't think that they need to be police officers," he said.
"They're not compensated as such, so they shouldn't be subject to it."
Security at the library was beefed up in 2019 with airport-style screening — metal detector wands and bag checks at the entrance.
The measures were met with an immediate backlash and scrapped the next year.
Delbridge doesn't want to a return to that style of security.
"I was proposing that maybe instead of dealing with privatized contract services, maybe we bring in our own security, where they can get training in racial profiling, on mental health, on conflict resolution," he said.
"That's what we should be looking at, I strongly believe. And we can invest in the staff there."
Before anything is done, the union wants the city to collaborate with community groups.
"There's a lot of vulnerable people within our community who are trying to better themselves by utilizing the services at the library, whether they're using the public computers for job applications, various other means," Delbridge said.
"That's what a library's for, to improve people's lives. That makes for a better community, makes for a better society. We can't lose sight of that. You can't take a knee-jerk approach and put up barriers."
The city, in a statement, said the library will remain closed at least until Dec. 19 "as we evaluate next steps for ensuring the safety of all staff and visitors."
All deadlines for holds and returns of library materials have been extended.
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With files from Erin Brohman