Workforce

2014: A Banner Year for Library Jobline

March 2015

Library jobs have officially recovered from the Great Recession, according to LRS’s popular library job posting website, LibraryJobline.org. In 2014, 615 jobs were posted—the most ever since the service’s launch in 2007—and more than twice that of 2009’s 228 jobs, a site low. We also saw the highest average starting wages for positions preferring the […]

2012 U.S. Academic Librarian Salaries: The West & Southwest Region Remains Competitive

October 2013

As the country slowly recovers from the latest economic recession, librarians and future librarians are looking to salary comparisons to better understand their current and potential earnings. The ALA-APA Salary Survey provides this information annually for positions requiring an ALA-accredited master’s degree. Here, we take a look at some of the highlights from this survey: […]

More Opportunities, Lower Pay: 2012 Insights From Library Jobline

May 2013

Introduction An examination of data from Library Jobline, a job-posting website operated by the Library Research Service, provides insight into Colorado’s library job climate. The data from 2012 shows that, for the third year in a row, the number of employment opportunities in the field has increased, but the level of compensation for professional-level library […]

Clearer Skies Ahead? Using Statistics from LibraryJobline.org to Gauge Changes in Colorado’s Library Job Climate

August 2012

LibraryJobline.org, an online resource maintained by the Library Research Service (LRS) at the Colorado State Library, lists job postings from employers in Colorado and beyond.[note]Ninety percent of jobs posted in 2011 were for positions located in Colorado.[/note] Library Jobline dates back to 2007, offering 5 years’ worth of statistics about Colorado’s library job climate. An […]

What is the Value of an MLIS to You?

June 2012

In May 2011, librarians, library staff, and library school students weighed in on the LRS 60-Second Survey The Value of an MLIS Degree to You. Almost 2,500 people from every state and 15 countries, representing all library types, responded. Around 1,300 respondents left comments, sharing additional thoughts on the value of the MLIS degree today. […]

A Brief Look at Librarian Salaries in U.S. and Public Libraries

May 2012

The 2010 Public Library Annual Report (PLAR) produced by the Library Research Service and the 2010 ALA-APA Salary Survey published by the American Library Association-Allied Professional Association both provide windows into the compensation earned by library professionals. Both the PLAR and the ALA-APA Salary Survey collect and publish salary data about similar library positions (see […]

Should Public Library Management Be Privatized? Viewpoints from the Field

September 2011

In September 2010, the New York Times published an article about the privatization of public libraries.[note]Streitfeld, D. (2010, September 26). Anger as private company takes over libraries. New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/27/business/27libraries.html?scp=1&sq=libraries%20streitfeld&st=cse[/note] This article described the trend in some communities to turn over the management of public libraries to a private organization. In response to this […]

2010 Academic Librarian Salaries: West and Southwest Region Offers Competitive Pay

June 2011

At a time when unemployed academic librarians worry about the prospects of finding a job, many employed librarians face cuts in pay or hours and wonder how their salaries compare to those of other librarians in similar positions across the country. Using the 2010 American Library Association-Allied Professional Association (ALA-APA) Salary Survey[note]2010 ALA-APA Salary Survey […]

Colorado’s Library Job Climate: 2007-2010 Insights from LibraryJobline.org

May 2011

Over 500 registered employers use LibraryJobline.org to post open positions. The site is managed by the Library Research Service, a unit of the Colorado State Library, and most of the jobs posted (89% in 2010) are located in Colorado. Jobseekers can tailor searches to their own qualifications and preferences and receive customized emails when new […]