Workers at the Columbus Metropolitan Library have launched a union drive they say is rooted in safety, fairness, and a demand for consistent workplace standards across the system. In an interview on the America’s Work Force Union Podcast, organizers Rahaf Fares and Sabrina Juntunen said staff have faced uneven safety practices, limited input on policies, inconsistent disability accommodations and staffing gaps that leave branches vulnerable during emergencies.
The group, CML United — affiliated with the Ohio Federation of Teachers — has submitted union cards to the Ohio State Employment Relations Board and is urging library leadership to pledge neutrality, allowing an election to proceed without delays or taxpayer-funded anti-union tactics. The organizers said they are looking to other Ohio library unions for models on wages that keep up with inflation, assault leave, clearer promotion pathways and improved benefits for part-time staff. They argue the library’s “Open to All” mission must include staff, not just patrons.
Organizing at public libraries is no longer a niche story in Ohio. It is becoming a recurring labor issue as library workers describe rising safety concerns, uneven workplace standards, and the strain of serving as a community’s last-resort public resource.
On the America’s Work Force Union Podcast, host Ed “Flash” Ferenc interviewed two organizers from the Columbus Metropolitan Library: Rahaf Fares, a customer services specialist at the Martin Luther King Branch, and Sabrina Juntunen, a material services associate at the Whetstone Branch.
Both are part of CML United, a union effort affiliated with the Ohio Federation of Teachers. They recently submitted union cards to the Ohio State Employment Relations Board, setting the stage for a potential representation election.
Fares joined the organizing committee in her second year at the library.
Juntunen said the work to form a union began in January 2023, and later, they joined the CML United effort as it took shape.
The message from both organizers was consistent: library workers want a voice in policies that shape their safety, their livelihoods, and their ability to serve the public.
Ferenc asked what conditions pushed staff toward organizing.
Fares said her branch experience was initially positive, but her perspective changed as they connected with coworkers across the system.
Fares described hearing about safety incidents, policies issued without staff input, and accessibility concerns tied to attendance rules.
In one location, Fares said, conditions can be manageable. In another, the same standards do not apply.
Juntunen framed the issue through the library’s public-facing identity.
The Columbus Metropolitan Library has “Open to All” written on its doors, Juntunen said, but the union believes the system cannot fully follow that promise when staff experience unequal safety practices, uneven policy enforcement, and inconsistent disability accommodations.
In their view, those disparities do more than frustrate workers. They drive turnover.
“When they’re not following safety practices uniformly or policies or disability accommodations on an equal level between branches, we lose good people,” Juntunen said.
Ferenc asked how management responded when staff raised concerns.
Fares pointed to the Staff Relations Committee, a process that allows staff to submit concerns for review.
On paper, Fares said, it sounds like a meaningful channel. In practice, they said, staff often receive explanations for why a rule exists rather than evidence that leadership is hearing the underlying problem.
One response, Fares said, they frequently heard: Other libraries do it this way.
Juntunen described the tone as “non-performative language,” adding that workers want the Staff Relations Committee to have “more teeth.”
The gap between process and power is a familiar theme in workplace organizing. Workers can speak, but without enforceable standards, the pair said the outcomes rarely change.
Asked what happened when staff moved toward a union drive, Juntunen said the group is waiting for the library’s response, including discussion at a board of trustees meeting.
CML United is asking the library to pledge neutrality.
In practical terms, organizers said neutrality means allowing the election process to proceed smoothly, without delays and without taxpayer-funded anti-union tactics.
The point, Juntunen said, is stewardship.
“We would like them to be good stewards of the money that the community has given them,” Juntunen said.
Organizers also emphasized the importance of public support. The union has already received letters of support, including from the Columbus City Council, Juntunen said.
Ferenc asked whether the broader organizing momentum in central Ohio is influencing the drive.
Fares said yes, pointing to unionized library systems as proof that collective bargaining can work in this sector.
They said some Ohio Federation of Teachers representatives previously worked at Worthington Public Libraries and helped organize there.
Seeing those negotiations and contract updates, they said, has given CML United confidence.
Organizers also use other library union contracts as practical tools.
When coworkers ask what improvements could look like, Fares said they share examples from existing agreements.
Ferenc asked what the union hopes to win in a first contract.
Juntunen said bargaining priorities will be driven by staff through a democratic process, including an elected bargaining committee.
Still, they said, several themes are already emerging from conversations with coworkers, including the following:
The inclusion of AI, Ferenc noted, is increasingly common across industries.
For library workers, the concern is not only technology adoption but how it is implemented and whether it changes job expectations without worker consent.
The most urgent section of the interview centered on assaults and safety.
Ferenc asked whether library assaults have increased, particularly after the pandemic. Juntunen said they have witnessed three assaults at her branch, all involving staff.
They described trying to keep the public safe during incidents and said security staffing is not consistent.
The library has dedicated security, they said, but the team is not fully staffed. Many security workers are part-time, and even full-time security staff can be pulled to other branches.
That can leave high-need branches without coverage. Juntunen also described a delayed emergency response.
In some cases, Juntunen said, security does not arrive even when it would be appropriate. Police calls can take an hour and a half, by which time the person is gone.
Fares has not personally experienced violence at work, but said coworkers have shared accounts.
Branch-level management does what it can with limited resources, Fares said, but without a union, the response can feel symbolic. Both organizers emphasized assault leave as a concrete fix.
They argued that workers who are assaulted should not be forced to use PTO to recover.
In some cases, closing a branch may be appropriate to protect staff and the public, Juntunen added.
Ferenc noted that the Columbus Metropolitan Library is publicly funded.
For organizers, that makes neutrality and transparency more than internal labor issues.
Juntunen directed supporters to CML United’s social media presence on Facebook and Instagram under “CML United.” Juntunen also referenced the Ohio Federation of Teachers website, where supporters can find a pledge: oft-aft.org/cml