TORONTO, ON – Rainy skies couldn’t put a damper on a ‘read-in’ organized outside the Toronto Reference Library by the workers who make Toronto’s public libraries one of the city’s most well-used and popular services.
The members of Local 4948 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE 4948), who organized the event, were joined by patrons, supporters and Toronto authors Anne Dublin and Hugh Spencer, who read excerpts from their most recent novels.
“We are so pleased to have the support and talents of Anne and Hugh for this event,” said Maureen O’Reilly, President of CUPE 4948.
“The dedication and commitment of Toronto’s literary community to the Toronto Public Library (TPL) and the workers who help make our public library system such a beloved community institution is always gratifying,” she added.
Anne Dublin, a writer of young adult fiction, shared segments from her most recent book, ‘44 Hours or Strike!’ which tells the story of two sisters during the Toronto Dressmakers’ Strike of 1931. Science fiction author Hugh Spencer, an Aurora Award nominee for excellence in Canadian science fiction, read pages from his latest book, ‘Extreme Dentistry’.
“While precarious employment is increasingly an issue across the Greater Toronto Area, it’s prevalence at TPL has been alarming for quite some time, and will only get worse unless we take action,” said O’Reilly.
Negotiations between CUPE 4948 and the TPL Board are expected to continue this week. Further events are being planned.
For more information, please contact:
Katrina Miller
647-272-5024
Kevin Wilson
CUPE Communications
416-821-6641
