As of January 1, striking library workers in Essex County will have spent six months and one week on the picket line.
The labour dispute over whether to move to a third-party insurer for sick time started June 25 and shows no signs of resolution.
CUPE Local 2974 spokeswoman Lori Wightman admits in the beginning, she didn't think they would be on strike more than a week, but she believes the dispute has become larger than just the library workers.
Striking library workers with the Essex County Library system attend the regular meeting of Essex County on August 10, 2016. (Photo by Ricardo Veneza)
Library board chair Richard Meloche has said bringing all the county bargaining groups under the same third-party insurer will save $500,000, but Wightman says the county has admitted those savings won't come from library workers, but rather those in the Essex-Windsor EMS and Sun Parlour Home groups.
The holiday season can be very hard for any family affected by a work stoppage, but Wightman says thanks to support from the community, her members are managing.
"They're okay," says Wightman. "Spirits are still pretty high."
The workers have grown close over the months. Before the strike, the workers, spread out in 14 branches across the county, knew only their immediate colleagues. Wightman says they've become friends.
"Prior to this, we really didn't know each other," she says. "You didn't really have a lot of contact with people from other branches. Now we're family."
Wightman remains optimistic a deal can be reached between the two sides, but admits the ordeal has left her cynical about county politics.
"It's frustrating when you feel you are dismissed from people that were very happy to take your vote. We talk about a lot about how disappointed we are."
So far, no new contract talks are planned.
