Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Councilors and union highlight 38 vacancies, lengthy hiring times and pay concerns at Boston Public Library
Summary
Library leaders told the council the system has 38 active vacancies and faces lengthy hiring timelines; a union speaker urged the council to prioritize pay and staffing for lowest‑paid workers.
David Leonard, president of the Boston Public Library, told the City Council Committee on Ways and Means that the library currently has 38 active vacancies and is still reducing the vacancy count created during the COVID period.
“The current number of active vacancies, is, 38 that we are trying to actually fill today,” Leonard said. He described a hiring timeline that “on average takes us at least 3 to 6 months to complete a hire,” and noted outliers where positions remained vacant for much longer.
Why it matters: Councilors and library staff said timely hiring and fair wages are essential to sustain services and programming. Several councilors and a union representative said long hiring timelines and…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
