NORTHAMPTON — Joining other fledgling unions on campus, more than two dozen library workers at Smith College have voted to unionize.

Tuesday’s election comes a month after the workers delivered a letter to the college president and the board of trustees announcing the formation of the union and requesting voluntary recognition, which was denied.

The newly formed union, known as the Smith College Libraries Workers Union, is affiliated with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 153.

The library workers are the third group to win a union election at the college in the past four months, following student residence life workers in December 2023 and student dining workers in February.

“Today we voted in support of one another and recognized the intrinsic value we all bring to our roles in the Smith College Libraries,” social sciences librarian Esther Roth-Katz said in a statement.

The college issued a brief statement in response to the union vote.

“Smith values its employees and respects the decision of the library workers who voted this week,” the statement read. “We will negotiate in good faith with their union representatives.”

Sam Heyne, a Local 153 organizer, said 33 people voted in the election, and a further nine potential ballots are subject to challenge because there’s no agreement yet on which workers can be included in the union.

“The actual size of the bargaining unit is still up in the air,” Heyne said.

First years’ engagement and humanities librarian Xochitl Quiroz said the union is hoping to represent approximately 40 people.

Quiroz, who began working at the libraries in July, said she became aware of the organizing effort after a few months.

One of the driving factors was high turnover, she said. She estimated that some 20 staff positions had opened up and been filled in the last two years.

“I was hearing from colleagues about how that affected them, how they were having to take on a lot of work because of positions not being filled,” she said.

The union also cited extraordinary efforts to keep the libraries functioning through the early days of the pandemic, despite low staffing and high turnover.

Some positions have been open for months or years, the union said, while others have been filled multiple times.

“Recruitment and retention are examples of problems that have challenged us over the past few years and where the ideas and input of all our staff will make a real difference,” Micah Walter, a web services librarian, said in a statement.

Union members also cited inadequate compensation, insufficient training, unclear decision-making processes, short staffing, job creep, and limited growth opportunities as issues that spurred their organizing efforts.

“It’s a pretty expensive place to live,” Quiroz said. “A lot of work is being put on those who are paid the least.”

The union will be looking to negotiate a new wage scale as well as “clear job descriptions, a grievance and arbitration system ... clear promotion and growth pathways, and a collective voice in their workplace.”

Union representation offers workers a chance to work with college leadership and library management, and to be involved in decision making, Quiroz said.

“It’s going to be a lot of work, but we’re excited,” she said.

Heyne, whose Local 153 also represents the student dining workers at Smith, praised the library workers as “an incredible group.” She sees the growth of organized labor on college campuses as a symptom of broader economic factors, including inflation and student loan debt, affecting college staff and student workers alike.

Student dining workers at Smith had their first bargaining session Friday.

“The college agreed to let all student dining workers into the bargaining unit, which the workers were happy with,” Heyne said.

James Pentland can be reached at jpentland@gazettenet.com.