‘Structural reform’ turned 60 percent of library staff into non-regular employees

Japan Press Weekly

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‘Structural reform’ turned 60 percent of library staff into non-regular employees

The “working poor” conditions in the public sector are often described by what public libraries are experiencing right now: 60 percent of library workers are non-regular employees. As of April 2009, 15,254 non-regular employees and 5,834 temporary employees sent by staffing agencies are working alongside with 12,623 regular workers in public libraries. Among them, those who have librarian certification include 6,421 in regular employment and 10,955 in non-regular employment, with 30 percent of public libraries in Japan operated only by non-regular staff.

This is the result of the government’s “structural reform” policies, introduced by the second Hashimoto Cabinet established in November 1996. Since then, regular library workers have decreased by 2,549 while non-regular workers have increased by 14,278.

The total expenditure for purchases of books and other materials by libraries in FY 2009 was 29.5 billion yen, or 9.37 million yen per library. The spending budget decreased by 6.5 billion yen, or 6 million yen per library since 1996 and 30 percent of municipalities allocate less than five million yen to their libraries for purchase of books and other materials.

There have been other moves to destroy the very foundation of the public library system. One was the abolition of the minimum standards for public libraries in 1999. Under the name of decentralization of power, the government eliminated requirements for libraries to have a director and staff with librarian certification. As a result, there are no certified librarians at nearly 40 percent of public libraries, and 80 percent of library directors do not have certification.

The other move has been to encourage municipalities to rely on the private sector to run libraries. The PFI (Private Finance Initiative) Law to use private funds to promote public facilities was enacted in 1999, followed by the 2003 revision of the municipal law to allow private bodies to run public institutions. In 2006, the government passed a law to introduce a “market test” to contract out public services through competitive bidding in which both public and private sectors take part.

Municipalities run libraries to guarantee all residents the right to have access to free reading materials. Although the library system does not fit in with the principle of the market, market-friendly measures have been introduced by the government to reduce costs.

The “structural reform” policies in the last 10 years have adversely impacted public libraries. However, local efforts have increased opposing the adverse revision of the municipal law as well as calling for the establishment of new libraries. Such efforts need to be strengthened further as the new government is following the former government’s “structural reform” course.

- Akahata, April 6, 2010