Tell Mayor Bill de Blasio and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz to instruct their appointed Queens Library trustees to demand that the Queens Library hire full time public service staff, including the 44 laid-off staff, custodians to end the contracting out, and librarians.

The recent reports of excessive, unnecessary salaries and wasteful capital spending at the Queens Library are deeply disturbing and have hurt the Library’s public service. Since 2008, the Queens Library’s President/CEO Thomas Galante has not hired a full-time public service staff member, including librarians, clerks, custodians and computer technicians resulting in the loss of over 150 public service staff, 44 layoffs and the contracting out of custodial services. His actions have resulted in less hours, fewer programs, dirtier libraries, slower services and demoralized staff. With the money used for excessive salaries and unnecessary capital projects, the Library can hire more public service staff who provide free materials, programs, computers, wifi, clean and safe libraries to thousands of diverse Queens Library users every day.

Mayor de Blasio and Borough President Katz keep Queens Library one of the best library systems in the World and tell your Queens Library trustees to have the Library rehire the 44 and hire more full-time public service staff.