I want to be in the Spotlight!

Good News!: The Saga of an Academic Library’s Successful Pay Equity Proposal

By Camilla Reid

Good news! The Reese Library of August State University has recently made great progress it its fight for higher salaries and pay equity. In recent years Reese Library administrators have struggled to accomplish one or two annual position reclassifications and equity adjustments along with modest merit increases, and any plans for widespread salary adjustments have been thwarted. But this year employees enjoyed a breakthrough. MORE

Vancouver Librarians -- Walk off the Job!

By Laura Drake, Concerned Librarians of British Columbia; July 26, 2007

Things to forward to while the hunt continues for our employer.

Aliza, CUPE 391 Bargaining Blog, September 4, 2007.

On July 26, Vancouver library workers walked off the job for the first time in their 77-year history, effectively closing the city's 21 branches. The union has asked the board to come back to the bargaining table, but as of September 4 it has not yet received a response. MORE

A plea for library funding in Chattanooga, TN

Chattanooga (TN) Times Free Press; September 2, 2007

Funding for the Chattanooga Public Library System has remained stagnant for six years, and the library system has had to cut staff and library hours. If the Hamilton County Commission cannot match $150,000 in contingent funds held by the City of Chattanooga, the library will receive no increase in funding this year. And without help, says the library board, there are more cuts ahead. MORE

Opelousas, LA Library funding increase sought

By William Johnson, Daily World (Opelousas, LA); August 28, 2007

According to figures supplied by the state library association, Opelousas Public Library’s budget is in such dire straits that even if its per capita funding of $3.52 were doubled, the library would still be the worst funded in the state. MORE

Tough cuts ahead for West County (CA) schools

By Kimberly S. Wetzel, Contra Costa Times (California); August 30, 2007

The rejection of a recent tax may force the West Contra Costa School District to cut several positions, including those of school library workers.

The Measure G parcel tax would have brought $14 million to the West Contra Costa school district annually. The current parcel tax, which brings $10 million to the district, expires in June 2009, leaving the school board desperate to carve those millions from an already lean budget. MORE

East Valley (WA) board adopts budget; Library staff, security among cuts

Treva Lind, Spokesman Review (Spokane, WA); August 25, 2007

East Valley High School’s new budget calls for the elimination of two librarian positions left vacant through attrition.

Under a budget recovery plan, one elementary librarian position and another middle school librarian position were cut. Remaining district librarians will cover schools on a rotation basis. High school security staff was cut by 1.5 positions, reflecting one slot lost through attrition. MORE

I want to write about Career Advancement!

Who Do You Know?

By Alexander Tyle

We've all heard that career advancement often springs from "who you know, not what you know." Today, web users are declaring "who they know," and they want everyone to see. Online social networking sites like Myspace, Facebook and Friendster, and professional networking sites like Linkedin.com, allow users to tell the world everything about themselves, from their hobbies to their education levels to a listing of their personal connections. MORE

I want to write about HR Law!

Family and Medical Leave: Employers Want “Administrative Complexities” Addressed before Congress Considers Mandatory Paid Sick Leave

By Christine Martin

A new report from the U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) outlines several complaints voiced by employers concerning the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). For example, many employers claim that FMLA’s definition of “serious health condition” allows employees to abuse medical leave. MORE

I want to write about HR Practice!

Cultural Mirror or Traditional Standards: How Should Libraries Regulate Tattoos, Piercing and Other Creative Body Expressions?

By Paula Seeger

The tattooed librarian, arguably, has become a new cliché. To beat back the specter of the spectacled Marian, many library workers have consciously adopted appearances that defy “meek and mild” stereotypes. But whatever the reason an individual chooses a tattoo, tattooing is part of a growing trend that includes other forms of body modification as well as non-traditional hair styles. MORE

I want to write about Recruitment!

Terry Collins – Mentor & Recruiter

By Sarah Rothstein

An informal survey taken on the “Emerging Leaders” blog (2/28/07) posed the question, “How did you become interested in the library profession?” Significantly, most of the 19 respondents mentioned volunteering or working in a library as a student. My own enjoyable experience working as a library page during high school informed my decision to join the profession. As many of the survey respondents did, I, too, pursued different career choices early in my life, but I thankfully retraced my path to libraries; so did many of my library school colleagues. There is enough anecdotal evidence in the profession to support the following assertion: the student assistants, pages, and volunteers who support our work in libraries today may become our librarians in the future. MORE

I want to write about Statistics!

Librarian Salary Survey reports mean librarian salary up 2.8 percent to $57,809 in 2007; non-MLS position salaries also reported

Results from the 2007 edition of the “ALA-APA Salary Survey: Librarian - Public and Academic” and “ALA-APA Salary Survey: Non-MLS - Public and Academic” are now available in two ways – immediately for subscribers to the ALA-APA Library Salary Database and in print in August from the American Library Association (ALA) online store. Analysis of data from more than 800 public and academic libraries showed the mean salary for librarians with ALA-accredited Master’s Degrees increased 2.8 percent from 2006, up $1,550 to $57,809. The median ALA MLS salary was $53,000. Salaries ranged from $22,048 to $225,000. MORE

I want to write about Work/Life!

Everything’s New, Not Just My Job!

By Emily Rogers

You’ve got the job, you’ve moved and you’re spending long hours learning new responsibilities and the workplace culture. Whether it’s your first job out of library school or a promotion that requires you to supervise a department or direct a library, you might feel you have to devote all your time and energy to your new job. Being in a new location can be so disorienting that it’s tempting to throw yourself into work and leave adjusting to your new home for “later.” MORE