Union objects to plan to replace community hub at downtown Winnipeg library

The union that represents the majority of City of Winnipeg workers has threatened legal action over a city decision to discontinue funding to a downtown information and service hub in the Millennium Library and replace it with another service provider.

A letter sent to Mayor Scott Gillingham and city councillors by Gord Delbridge, president of Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500, objects to the plan to bring in workers from the Downtown Community Safety Partnership to take over the space formerly occupied by Community Connections.

The space was previously staffed by city librarians and community safety hosts. The city's 2025 budget did not include funding for the space, which closed at the end of last year.

"This is work that was normally performed by CUPE 500 members, and we were put into a position where, you know, we had to take further action," said Delbridge.

Supporters of the space have said the hub was an accessible source of information for library users, many of them newcomers and downtown residents.

It also provided a separate space away from the main library where crisis workers could help people experiencing issues who otherwise might have posed a safety risk.

The mayor and some council members have said the city should not take on work that they say falls under provincial responsibility, such as providing information about housing and health services. They've also expressed concern about the fact that the space sits in the library's lobby, outside the metal detectors and security guards stationed at the front entrance.

The Downtown Community Safety Partnership, which started as a pilot project in 2019, is a collaboration between the province, the city, the Downtown BIZ, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service, police, and True North Sports and Entertainment. It provides safety services, including community patrols in the downtown area. 

At a meeting of the executive policy committee in January, DCSP executive director Greg Burnett presented a proposal to replace Community Connections with a "satellite space" for a core team of outreach workers to do casework and provide support on an as-needed basis.

It would not be intended as a drop-in site, although it would be open to the public if needed.

Community Connections began operating in 2022 as a way to address safety concerns at the library, though one city councillor questioned whether a library was an appropriate location for such services.

The cost to operate the space was about $614,000 a year.

'Very little discussion' on plan: councillor

The letter from the union says the new plan violates its collective agreement and the Labour Relations Act.

"CUPE 500 has a policy of always following our work, and we will defend the scope of our bargaining unit through any means, including an application for successor rights," the letter says.

Successor rights refers to labour code provisions that allow a bargaining agent, like a union, to represent employees and continuation of collective agreements when a business or function is sold or transferred.

Colin Fast, a spokesperson for the mayor, said in a statement that raising concerns about work arrangements is standard for unions, and a process exists to address those concerns.

"The Downtown Community Safety Partnership will continue providing the same services they already offer, just in an additional location, and they already have a significant presence in the library," Fast wrote.

City spokesperson Felicia Wiltshire told CBC News in an email statement the city will respond to the union's grievance through the process outlined in the collective agreement.

Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry Coun. Sherri Rollins, whose ward includes the library, says she had concerns about the way the plan was brought forward at a budget meeting of the executive policy committee. It was one of the reasons she resigned from her position as property and development committee chair last month, she said.

The proposal came as a surprise to her even as the area councillor, Rollins said in an interview.

"There had been very little discussion. I really felt that this role, having been the councillor and the chair on EPC when Community Connections was launched, that it was really needed in the downtown that people relied upon it."

Delbridge said he couldn't go into detail about what other action CUPE might take, but he hopes the union can come to an agreement with the city.

Their ultimate goal is to restore the Community Connections space in its original location, he said.