For Women’s History Month, Let’s Celebrate Women’s Contributions to Labor (With Some Books!)

Jason Allen

March is Women’s History Month, a time to highlight and honor women’s contributions to history, culture and society . This year’s theme is “Women Who Tell Stories,” which recognizes “women, past and present, who have been active in all forms of media and storytelling including print, radio, TV, stage, screen, blogs, podcasts, news, and social media.”

As library employees, we have a special role in preserving and sharing women’s stories and achievements. One of these stories is the history of women in labor, which is often missing from textbooks and the media.

Women have always been key to the labor movement, from organizing strikes and unions, to rallying for better working conditions and wages, to documenting and inspiring workers’ struggles for justice. For Women’s History Month, Council 2 compiled a list [PDF] of recommended reading to help expand our appreciation for the under-valued roles women have played in history.

Below is a list of recommended reading from Council 2 highlighting the role of women in history, with links to the KCLS catalog:

The following books are ones that KCLS does not own, but you can request through Interlibrary Loan (Hi! 👋That’s the department where I work! We welcome your requests!):

  • Song of the Stubborn One Thousand: The Watsonville Canning Strike, 1985-87 (2016) by Peter Shapiro
  • Jailed for Freedom: American Women Win the Vote (1995) by Doris Stevens
  • Labor of Love, Labor of Sorrow: Black Women, Work, and the Family, from Slavery to the Present (2009) by Jacqueline Jones

Happy Women’s History Month!

Council 2 Scholarship Deadline is Fast Approaching

Jason Allen

​Attention ​Local 1857 members!

If you or your dependents are planning to pursue higher education this year, don’t miss the opportunity to apply for Council 2 scholarships. ​Last year, Council 2 awarded over $65,000 in memory of our late Local 1857 member Jennie Westlund, in addition to other awards. ​The deadline for submitting your applications is March 15th, so hurry up and ​get them in!

Apply Today

Council 2 offer​s​ a variety of scholarships to support our members and their families in achieving their academic goals. This year, ​there are nearly 30 scholarships for members in good standing​ and their dependents​.

​For more information and the application form, visit the Scholarship page at Council 2.

Remember your application form must be postmarked no later than March 15th in order to be eligible.

2022 1857-Main Executive Board Election Results

Jason Allen

Our recent nomination meeting brought on several new Members as we said goodbye and thanks to others. Here’s the current make-up of the board:

President – Kim Atchley
Vice President / Chief Steward– Rai Yiannakos*
Secretary – Elaine Ang*
Treasurer – Victoria Kunze

LTA at Large – Linda Jarvis
LTA at Large – Christi Wheelock*
Librarian at Large – Jennifer Duffy*
PSA at Large – Aisha Burrell*
Maintenance at Large – Katie Mathews*
All Other Classifications at Large – Stan Brooks*

Trustee – Currently Vacant
Page at Large – Currently Vacant
Page at Large – Currently Vacant

*New eboard member, or at least new to this specific role! Let them know you appreciate their time and energy on our behalf.

Many thanks to outgoing Peter Cole for his years of dedicated service as Vice President and Chief Steward for Local 1857. His leadership and advocacy will be sorely missed, but he does intend to continue being very active in our union. And while Peter left some big shoes to fill, as Rai Yiannakos demonstrated when she served as interim Local 1857 Main president last year, she’s more than up to the task!

Also thanks to outgoing members Don Isaacs, Kelly Millman, Jess Gray and Jason Allen for their time volunteering to be on the board.

Our trustee position, and both Page-at-Large positions are open and will be filled by appointment by the eBoard. If you are interested, or have any questions, please email us at eboard@kclsvoice.org.

Union Election! 2022 Edition.

Jason Allen

Want to make a meaningful contribution to our union and help shape our priorities? Please consider joining your Local 1857 Executive Board during this upcoming annual election!

The following positions are ending their term and open for re-election:

● Vice-President Two Year Term
● Secretary Two Year
● Page–at-Large One Year
● Page-at-Large One Year
● LTA-at-Large One Year
● LTA-at-Large One Year
● Librarian-at-Large One Year
● PSA-at-Large One Year
● Maintenance-at-Large One Year
● All Other Classifications-at-Large One Year
● Trustee Three Year

Nominations will be taken at our General Membership Meeting on Friday, November 4th starting at 7pm via Zoom, or can be submitted in advance to Election Chair (and outgoing Vice President) Peter Cole. Reach Peter at chiefstewardlocal1857@gmail.com.

Any nominee who does not decline the nomination is assumed to be interested in running. Nominees do not need to be present on 11/4 to be nominated. If only one nomination is received for any open position, they will be elected by acclamation. Any positions with more than one nominee will be voted on by the Local1857 membership via an election conducted by US Mail during the month of November. Common to all positions, is a commitment to meet monthly, currently virtually, on Friday evenings.

Thank you for considering joining the Executive Board. New ideas, perspectives and insight are welcome and good for our Union!

Hardship Fund Wrap Up Spring 2022

chiefsteward1857

The Local 1857 Hardship Fund has concluded its second year successfully with grants given to 54 members in good standing. 

The Hardship Fund was an idea borne of the knowledge that this past year our members were affected by economic downturns and fewer available KCLS hours to supplement our paychecks.  This reality – combined with careful stewardship of union finances and decreased costs to our union during the pandemic – created an opportunity to again award members grants of $400. 

It is the strength of our Union and the support of our fellow members which make this possible.

This year saw an increase in participation and repeated validation of the need to support each other in various ways. We learned the awards helped members make car payments, pay student loans, close out medical bills, reduce debts and better care for children and parents among other necessities. Applicants stated they didn’t wish to take away from others more in need and were grateful for this economic grant made possible by our membership. 

The Executive Board is thankful for the input of members in designing this program and the efforts of the Task Force which carried it out.  In this second year of the Hardship Fund we built on our experience from last year and further refined our systems for promoting, communicating and delivering the awards.