Librarianship places an ethical demand on practitioners to put patrons or library users' interests before self-interest, and indeed, this is the hallmark of any service profession. But what obligation do school librarians have to their peer librarians and educators? The Code of Ethics of the American Library Association offers this principle, "We…

Among issues that library managers need to consider is work suitability involving older or impaired workers or employees with disabilities. This can involve factors needing consideration when hiring or retaining these workers. Disabilities or impairments can range from visual or auditory, to physical or mental, to learning or age-related. They can…

People and organizations are inherently political. Library workplace environments have zones of tension and dynamics just like any corporation, often leading to the formation of political camps. These different cliques influence productivity and work-related issues and, at worst, give meetings the feel of the Camp David negotiations. Politics are…

How librarians came to their careers is as varied as the people themselves, but despite some often highly publicized challenges for college and university librarians in the digital age, academic librarianship is good work, according to the "Library Journal's" Job Satisfaction Survey. This article presents the results of this survey. The…

An increasing number of academic and research libraries have built high-density shelving facilities to address overcrowding conditions in their regular stacks. However, the work performed in these facilities is physically strenuous and highly repetitive in nature and may require the use of potentially dangerous equipment. This article will examine…

In this article, the author shares some tips for the new or not-so-new library media specialists. During the first week of school, the library media specialist's life will be filled with teacher work days, mandatory meetings, piles of stuff with no apparent purpose, and a line of teachers and other staff who want something from the library. There…

Discusses the problem of incompetent library supervisors in terms of the process that results in the selection of such supervisors, inappropriate supervisory behaviors, and the effects on employees. Several strategies for coping with an incompetent supervisor are suggested. (4 references) (CLB)

This sixth article in a series discusses planning for the installation and implementation of automated systems in the library, workstation design and location, scheduling of software implementation, security, data input, staff and reader training, job design, impact of automation on library procedures, evaluation of system performance, and future…

Reviews information on part-time professionals from legislatures and associations, reports on informal survey of five academic library administrators, and examines part-time librarian situation at a community college (salaries, fringe benefits, adjunct decision making, different success scales). American Library Association's Part Time Employment…