Library Service to Unions: A Historical Overview

American public libraries and labor unions began their institutional development during the nineteenth century as communities developed and prospered across the nation. Both institutions had strong democratic ideals and a firm commitment to free, quality education for all Americans, and so the historical roots of these institutions intertwined. Public libraries strive to serve the special needs of specific populations within their communities by providing the materials and resources they need. In areas of densely populated organized labor communities, special services could include historical and biographical works on the labor movement; literacy materials; and industrial, economic, and political studies. However, according to a national public libraries research study, libraries since the late 1960s have shifted from providing organized labor with special services to treating them as a group of patrons without special needs. This article briefly reviews the evolution of public libraries, the origins of today's union movement, and the role of the AFL-CIO/ALA Joint Committee on Library Service to Labor Groups. The article further defines a number of misunderstandings and lack of trust between libraries and organized labor.