[Publib] as a profession......loyalty?

[James Casey]

If one's sole experience has been in a gigantic public library where
there are hundreds or thousands of employees, I can see how one could
feel alienated and less connected to administration.  My own career
began at Cleveland Public Library in the downtown main library facility
(1973-77).  Being one junior member of a staff of 1,000, I shared your
jaded view of administrations, wondered what the folks in the three
piece suits did all day long and disliked having little power to try
anything creative or to question insane policies.  That was 30+ years
ago.  Things haven't changed that much from what I recall.  I could well
have identified with your frustration of 2007 about "corporate mindset"
back in 1977.  However, in that year I moved on to smaller library
settings where I had more authority, regular contact with directors and
the freedom to actually run a department or section.  It made all the
difference in the world.  

The majority of public libraries are much smaller.  Only 11% of the
9,500 public libraries in the USA serve populations of 50,000 or more.
The vast majority of public library directors tend to be line workers
right along with staff -- right in the trenches --- or directors of
mid-sized libraries where a director is a flight of stairs away from the
public service areas.  


James B. Casey -- My own views.
Director of Oak Lawn Public Library
ALA Council Member


-----Original Message-----
From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of
mklibrarian at gmail.com
Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 12:51 PM
To: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: RE: [Publib] as a profession......loyalty?


The 'corporate mindset' seems to be creeping in everywhere.

Many of us came to librarianship assuming this was a place where it
wouldn't happen, where caring and altruism would always prevail. Sure,
we
are all about questioning and the late Sam Rothstein (LIS prof at UBC)
might have been right in saying librarians are 'querulous loners' (I
sure
am), but even so, morale seems to be very bad in most public libraries
these days. I hear it everywhere.

Administrators who entered the biz for the same reasons we did get swept
up into a world of politics, schmoozing and martini sipping and seem
much
more content to call in a consultant with a briefcase to to conduct
'team
building exercises' than to actually walk downstairs and talk with
staff.
In the last two places I worked - central libraries in medium-size
cities
- I never even met the three directors, neither did most of my ref
colleagues...and these directors had offices in the same facility. In
fact, two directors got up on _staff appreciation_ days and waxed
rhapsodic about their dreams of all self-service libraries. Librarians
are
regarded by many in the executive suite as nothing more than an
overpriced
nuisance.

We've got problems and I have no idea how we solve them. We know the
patrons - and a world so in need of repair - still need us. It hurts.

-M!





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