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Salem Public Library pauses curbside hold pickup so staff can work from home

Senior library assistant Armando Trujillo wheels the Salem Public Library’s curbside pickup cart outside for patrons on Aug. 26 (Courtesy/Salem Public Library)

The Salem Public Library has suspended its curbside book service so employees can fully work from home as local Covid case numbers continue rising.

As of Nov. 24, library patrons are no longer able to make an appointment to pick up holds or return items in a drop bin outside the library’s main branch on Broadway Avenue.

While the service allowed patrons to access items outside without coming into contact with each other or library workers, City Librarian Sarah Strahl said the pause is to allow staff to work completely from home.

That’s in line with Gov. Kate Brown’s executive order, which went into effect last week, requiring businesses to mandate employees to work from home as much as possible.

“Five staff at West Salem Branch and six to ten staff at Broadway working in close proximity is too much risk for what is an important, but not a critical service,” Strahl said in an email.

Library buildings have been closed to the public since March, with due dates on checked out items extended. In late May, the library began offering appointments for patrons to pick up holds they placed online or over the phone.

Strahl said that program has circulated about 2,425 library items weekly, with about 36,000 currently checked out.

There’s no set date to resume the service. Strahl said the library will reassess when Brown’s “freeze” order is lifted.

All checked out library items now have a due date of March 31, 2021.

Library staff are still available for virtual services including helping patrons check out audiobooks and ebooks. The library also has a Book Match service where readers can fill out a short survey and get custom book recommendations from librarians.

Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.

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Rachel Alexander is Salem Reporter’s managing editor. She joined Salem Reporter when it was founded in 2018 and covers city news, education, nonprofits and a little bit of everything else. She’s been a journalist in Oregon and Washington for a decade. Outside of work, she’s a skater and board member with Salem’s Cherry City Roller Derby and can often be found with her nose buried in a book.