MEMBERS OF Local 1857, representing staff at the King County Library System, have approved a new contract with the library administration in the wake of a vote of no-confidence in the director Bill Ptacek taken in the spring of 2006.

“The Local entered contract negotiations in the Fall and obtained an agreement before the contract expired,” says Council 2 Staff Representative Diana Prenguber. “I don’t think we would have had a contract yet if it were not for the vote of no-confidence.”

The new contract provides improved guidelines for schedules, which have been a source of concern for members, and sets a limit on how many people work at more than one library in a cluster. Clustering is the name given to the practice of combining two, three or more library branches under a single manager and rotating workers among those libraries.

“But the union still hopes that clustering will be removed,” Prenguber adds.

Another feature of the new contract is that it provides improved terms for work performed under a higher classification. The new terms make it easier for staff to get paid for the out-of-classification work. The contract also requires that substitute hours be offered first to union members and, after that, to the substitute pool at large.

It also allows for six labor management meetings a year with the full executive board attending as well as six smaller meetings. The previous contract allowed only two meetings a year. The new contract also permits union members to donate time to union representatives that they can use to work on union activities. Under the old contract, the representatives had to take vacation time to do so.

“Union participation will be easier and hopefully more members will participate,” Prenguber says.

This contract is the second negotiated by Local 1857 since it was formed more than four years ago. “We have improved language,” Prenguber explains. “Overall, this is a better contract.”