Towards A National Strategy
for Library Human
Resources in Canada
Ernie Ingles
International Association of Technological University
Libraries
24th Annual Conference
Ankara, Turkey
June 2, 2003
1
Introduction

The knowledge economy holds new
opportunities and demands for librarians

Institutions must recruit, retain and develop a
committed and talented workforce to maximize
opportunities

Adequate numbers of skilled professionals is
necessary to address these challenges
2
The Issue

Anecdotal evidence of a coming professional
shortage due to retirements and static
recruitment

48% of Canadian librarians will enter
retirement age by 2005. Weiler, “Libraries Face ‘Skills Gap’.”
Quill & Quire. 66.1 Jan. 2000.

Forecasts of shortages have also been made
for the United States and Australia
3
Challenges and Opportunities

Projected mass shortages present a challenge to
the ‘natural progression’ of the development of
leaders and upper management within the library
sector

This projected shift in personnel is also an
unprecedented opportunity for the sustained
growth and revitalization of the profession

This is a timely opportunity for in-depth research
on the profession within Canada
4
Current Data,
Aggregate Statistics
and Recent Research
5
Projected Number of Retirements at Age 65 per
Year Based on Projections for All Librarians in
CMA’s from the 1996 Canadian Census
500
Age 60+
400
Age 65
300
200
100
1997
1999
2001
2003
2005
2007
2009
2014
6
Projected Number of Retirements
(cont.)

CMAs = Census Metropolitan Areas or larger urban areas; this does
not include librarians in smaller centres

Two scenarios

Assuming librarians retire at 65
 Projected

Assuming librarians retire at 60+
 Projected

total retirements 2002-2014: 2,500
total retirements 2002-2014: 4,000
The number of librarians turning 65 each year
after 2006 is twice the rate of the previous ten
years
7
Education and Training

Total numbers of MLIS graduates in the United States
have been called “stagnant”

Enrollment in Canadian MLIS programs appears to be
increasing; this growth comes after a sustained decline

Students in SLIS tend to be older than in other
professional programs

The employment requirement of an MLIS from an
American Library Association-accredited program can
limit employment opportunities for immigrants –
Canada’s fastest growing workforce sector
8
Enrollment in Canadian
Library Studies Programs
980
960
940
920
Full-Time
Graduate
Students
900
880
860
840
820
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
*Data source: ALISE Library and Information Science Education Statistical Reports
9
Ages of Students Enrolled in Canada
and U.S. MLIS Programs, Fall 2000
45-49
12%
50-54 >54
7% 2%
40-44
12%
NA
6%
20-24
11%
25-30
23%
35-39
12%
30-34
15%
20-24
25-30
30-34
35-39
40-44
45-49
50-54
>54
NA
*based on total of 13,127 enrolled. Note: Pratt, Western Ontario and Toronto
10
data not available. Source: ALISE Library and Information Science
Scienc Statistical Report 2000.
Education and Training
Questions:
 If SLIS easily reach their quotas for students, does this
limit motivation for active recruitment?

How does the status of the profession affect recruitment
of students with excellent potential?

Is the MLIS degree from an accredited school the most
appropriate requirement for a library career?

Are immigrant librarians’ international credentials being
ignored?
11
Canadian Library Context

Libraries have undergone enormous changes in
recent years
New technologies
 Resulting competency shifts
 Greater expectations from patrons
 Sustained budget cuts


Budget cuts have resulted in a decreased
capacity for new hiring during this time period
12
Change in Canadian Libraries




Paradigmatic shifts are currently taking place within
libraries
External pressures on the library sector and its resulting
reorganization complicate a simple examination of supply
of new professionals
A thorough understanding of the demand factors that
may limit or expand the need for professional librarians is
necessary
Harris and Marshall (1998) surveyed directors and
librarians in Canadian public and academic libraries



Librarians now expected to perform generalist
management roles to the diminishment of traditional skill
sets
Skills and decision-making responsibilities have been
redeployed to paraprofessionals
The result is the "compression" of the structure and a
reduction in the need for professional librarians
13
Shortages in Positions and Staff

Budget cutbacks have resulted in the elimination or
merging of middle and senior positions as they
become vacant

Are there enough trained staff to fill upper
management vacancies in a scenario of mass
retirements?
14
Diversity Issues

Libraries are seen as not creating enough
opportunities for women and minorities, both at
entry-level and in higher management

By 2011 all net labour force growth in Canada
will be supplied by immigrant workers

How will this affect the MLIS hiring requirement?
15
2.2 million people immigrated to Canada in the
last 10 years - the largest amount for any decade
Immigration currently accounts for 50% of all population growth
Projected Canadian birth rate decline may increase this percentage
Annual number of immigrants admitted to Canada, 1901-2000
450
Opening & Settlement
of the West
400
Thousands
350
300
250
World War I
1914-1918
200
150
The Great
Depression
and World War II
1939-1945
100
50
0
1901
2000
1911
1921
Source: Citizenship and Immigration Canada
1931
1941
1951
1961
1971
1981
1991
Highest proportion of foreign-born since the
1931 Census, but lower than at beginning of
the century
%
25
20
2001 – 18.4%
15
10
5
0
1901
1911
1921
1931
Source: Statistics Canada, 1901-2001 Censuses
1941
1951
1961
1971
1981
1991
2001
Visible minorities (people non-Caucasian
in race) were under-represented across
the library sector
Visible minorities as a % of population aged 25-44 in selected library sector occupations
Supervisors: lib., corresp. &
related info. clerks
11.4
Technicians/assistants:
libraries & archives
10.9
Librarians
10.0
Managers: lib., arch., mus. &
art galleries
5.4
0
Note: Population who worked in 2000.
Source: Statistics Canada, 2001 Census
5
8.8% in heritage occs. (14.0%
in all occs.) were vismin.
10
%
15
The vast majority of visible minorities in
the library sector were foreign-born
Foreign-born as a % of visible minority population aged 25-44 in selected library sector occupations
Librarians
74.0
Technicians/assistants:
libraries & archives
79.1
87.3% =
all occs.
0
Note: Population who worked in 2000.
Source: Statistics Canada, 2001 Census
20
40
60
80
100
%
Visible minorities were more likely to have
a degree than non-visible minorities
% of population aged 25-44 in selected library sector occupations with a bachelor’s degree or higher
75.0
Librarians
67.1
Techncians/assistants:
libraries & archives
50.4
31.1
Visible minority
Not a visible minority
0
20
40
60
80
100
%
Note: Population who worked in 2000.
Source: Statistics Canada, 2001 Census
Visible minorities were younger regardless of
occupation within the library sector
Median age for the population aged 15 and older in selected library sector occupations
Technicians/assistants:
libraries & archives
40.9
44.5
43.1
Librarians
47.1
Visible minority
Not a visible minority
0
5
Note: Population who worked in 2000.
Source: Statistics Canada, 2001 Census
10
15
.
20
25
30
35
40
45
50 Years
Summary: visible minorities working in
selected library sector occupations



Visible minorities tended to be under-represented
in the library sector. Some groups are more underrepresented than others.
Within the library sector, visible minorities were
under-represented in all occupations.
Visible minorities within the library sector tended to
be more highly educated and younger than nonvisible minorities.
Current Literature and Perceptions

The majority of the literature considers the
American library context

Data sources for literature on the United States
are aggregate and present only a sketchy
picture

Some library sectors in the United States are
reporting a shortage, including cataloguing,
school libraries and academic libraries
23
Current Literature and Perceptions

Factors that affect personnel supply and
demand:





no expansion of available places in MLS programs
outflow of Canadian graduates to more buoyant US
library job market
more lucrative opportunities in the knowledge economy
continued staff cutbacks in publicly-funded libraries
graduates of MLS programs are generally over 30, and
therefore have shorter careers than other professionals
24
Human Resource Management

Benefits of national succession planning include:
increased opportunities for newer professionals
 Improved employee morale
 easing restructuring or downsizing actions
 larger pool of promotable employees




Long-term planning and support from top
management is necessary
Succession management could provide strategy
for rejuvenation in the library sector
Individual libraries have started to take action
25
The Core Problem
“There is a dearth of statistics examining
the way in which the [library] profession
is changing.”
Canadian Culture in Perspective: A Statistical Overview.
Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 2000.
26
The Core Problem (cont.)

The majority of literature on the coming
shortage is anecdotal

Available data is extrapolated from aggregate
sources that show broad trends but can’t
explain particulars

The Canadian heritage sector lacks data that
can address questions of supply and demand
27
Questions Arising from Problem
“Despite the wealth of literature on succession
planning or succession management
and its importance to organizational health
and success, there is a paucity of literature
on succession planning in libraries
of any type.…”
Bridgland, Angela, “To Fill, or How to Fill- That is the Question: Succession Planning
and Leadership Development in Academic Libraries.”
Australian Academic and Research Libraries. 30.1 (March 1999).
28
Questions Arising from Problem
(cont.)

Supply and demand of human resources



Attracting the ‘best and brightest’ to the profession
Attracting talented recruits to all types of libraries e.g.
schools as well as post-secondary institutions
Role of the paraprofessional or subject specialist vs. the
credentialed professional

What information is needed about issues of
recruitment, retention and retirement?

How does the Canadian context differ from the
American context?
29
Questions Arising from Problem (cont.)

How do we obtain this information to prepare for
succession planning?




Who should care?





At the national level
At the sectoral level
At the institutional level
What is the role of the national association?
What is the role of sectoral associations?
What is the role of library schools?
What is the role of the library administrator?
How can associations and institutions use this information
to address the need in a coordinated approach?
30
Current Research Needs
31
Research Needs


Much of the current literature has stated a need for
formal investigation of trends in the professional
ecosystem
“…more study is needed to identify trends in the library
community…[and] should include sampling a larger
library population, identifying geographical trends and
sources of supply…and so on.” Summerfield, “CLA’s Human
Resources and Succession Planning Survey: Analysis and Recommendations.”
Feliciter 48.4 2002.

“Other disciplines have criticized library literature over
the years as being too anecdotal and too little based
on hard research…”David M. Harralson, “Recruitment in Academic
Libraries: Library Literature in the 90s.” College and Undergraduate Libraries. 8:1.
2001.
32
Research Needs (cont.)

“Studies of supply and demand should…be
carried out at the national level with
consolidated support...” Van Fleet and Wallace. “O Librarian,
Where Art Thou?” Reference and User Services Quarterly. 41.3 Spring
2002.

We need a multi-level strategy in order to avoid
replicating the problems encountered in other
sectors
33
Strategies

Build a coalition of the library community
across sectors to undertake a national study

Undertake a comprehensive survey to examine
issues of recruitment, retention and retirement
in Canadian libraries

Initiate a national dialogue and widely
disseminate the data and reports so that
institutions, associations and even individuals
can make strategic decisions that are in their
best interests
34
Research Scope



A national strategy that can be tailored to
individual libraries will be the most effective and
efficient response
The situation implicates libraries across the
country, and within every field
It implicates professionals at all stages of their
careers

MLIS students and educators, paraprofessionals,
new professionals, mid-career professionals,
senior management, and those about to retire
35
Research Outline

The study includes participation of municipal,
regional and national professional associations
as well as institutions

New, mid-career and senior professionals and
paraprofessionals in public, academic, school,
and special libraries, as well as in SLIS
programs will be surveyed
36
Major Questions



Supply: Is there an impending shortage of
librarians exacerbated by a decreasing supply of
new recruits?
Demand: How have external factors changed
functional requirements and organizational
restructuring of library operations and the role of
librarians?
Supply + Demand: How does a decreasing
supply of professional librarians fit with a
changing demand in library operations and for
librarians?
37
Objective

Comprehensive investigation of issues around
recruitment, retention, remuneration, repatriation,
rejuvenation, reaccreditation, retirement, and
restructuring (the ‘8 Rs’) in the Canadian library context
The ‘8Rs’








Recruitment
Retention
Remuneration
Repatriation
Reaccreditation
Rejuvenation
Retirement
Restructuring
38
Outcomes

A toolkit of strategies of individual libraries and
key recommendations

Baseline data to create a statistical analytic
framework and standard indicators for long-range
assessment

Study data will be analyzed at local levels
39
Recruitment


Issues at the education level and for new
professionals
Areas of investigation
Numbers of SLIS graduates anticipated over the
next decade
 Numbers of new hires made by Canadian libraries
 SLIS recruitment strategies
 Library recruitment strategies
 Diversity initiatives from SLIS programs and
libraries

40
Retention

Areas of investigation
Professional development programs offered to
employees (entry level, mid-career, senior)
 Experiences of librarians with regard to career
progression and mentorship
 Libraries’ financial resources for funding training
programs
 Librarians’ perceptions of major factors that
encourage staff retention

41
Remuneration

Areas of investigation:
Salary expectations of librarians over their
careers
 Extent to which salary plays a role for new
professionals, mid-career and senior librarians
 Extent to which possibility of non-traditional
opportunities influences importance of salary
 How libraries compete with other industries

42
Repatriation


For MLIS graduates who obtain work in the U.S. and in
non-traditional sectors
Areas of investigation:
 Age groups seeking employment outside Canada
 Numbers of Canadian librarians currently working in
the U.S.
 Motivations of Canadian librarians working in the U.S.
 Long-term plans of Canadian expatriates in the U.S.
(i.e. are they paying off education debt loads and
planning to return?)
 Numbers of librarians who work in non-traditional
sectors
43
Rejuvenation


For librarians in the mid-career stage and nearing
retirement.
Areas of investigation:
 Mid-career motivation levels
 Individual innovation levels
 Libraries’ practices to encourage innovative services
and practices at the senior level?
 What mid- and senior level librarians want for
motivational strategies and practices?
 Extent to which libraries and professional associations
are identifying and working toward future competencies
44
Reaccreditation


To explore the extent to which institutions and individuals
are articulating their vision of appropriate accreditation
and competencies for the realities of the industry.
Areas of investigation:
 Differences between programs that focus on
traditional MLIS coursework and those that focus on
new technologies
 Motivation for different accreditations based on focus
 Extent to which libraries recognize immigrant
professionals who hold a librarian degree from outside
North America?
45
Reaccreditation: Context

Immigrants, with their higher education levels, still have
difficulty fully integrating into the workforce:
“There are many immigrants whose skills are underused
because Canadian regulatory bodies and employers do
not recognize their foreign-earned trades diplomas,
professional licenses, academic credentials, or work
experience.”
Source: Human Resource Development Canada, 2002
46
Importance of Reaccreditation



Immigration now accounts for more than 50% of
total population growth
1990’s immigrants accounted for 70% of labour
force growth
Increasing number of immigrants admitted to
Canada in economic category since mid-1990’s
47
Retirement


Retirement trends in the profession
Areas of investigation:
Numbers of librarians intending to retire at 60 or
65
 Library strategies for dealing with mass vacancies

 Will
the positions stay open, or will libraries close
them under budget constraints?
Retention incentives from libraries for librarians
nearing retirement
 Incentives that would influence librarians’
decisions to remain in their positions until 65

48
Restructuring


An examination of professional librarians and
paraprofessionals
Areas of investigation:
 Numbers of librarians and paraprofessionals
entering the workforce
 Typical job duties of professionals vs.
paraprofessionals?
 Perceptions of role and status
 Restructuring efforts made by libraries to
redefine roles
49
Key Study Elements
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Review of relevant literature
Survey of heritage sector administrators
Survey of library management
Survey of mid-career library professionals
Survey of new professionals
Survey of paraprofessionals
Survey of library schools
Survey of post-secondary students regarding their
perceptions of librarianship
Wide dissemination of the data
Creation of toolkit for individual libraries
50
Timeline
2003
 April: Telephone survey of library administrators
 May: Survey of Heritage institutions
 September: National workshop for Heritage
institutions
 October: Final Heritage sector report
Interim Library sector report
 November: Survey of mid-career library
professionals
Survey of new professionals
51
Timeline (cont.)
2004
 January: Survey of new professionals
 March: Survey of paraprofessionals
 May: Interim Report
 June: Survey of library schools
 September: Survey of non-SLIS students
 October: Survey of SLIS students
2005
 February: Data and toolkit dissemination
Final report
52
Steering Committee








Ernie Ingles, Associate Vice-President (Learning Services)
and Chief Librarian, University of Alberta
Dr. Marianne Sorensen, Methodologist
Chuck Humphrey, Data Library Coordinator, University of
Alberta
Kathleen De Long, Associate Director, Finance and Human
Resources, University of Alberta
Dr. Alvin M. Schrader, SLIS, University of Alberta
William Curran, Director of Libraries, Concordia University
Carolynne Presser, Director of Libraries, University of
Manitoba
Julia Goodman, Development Officer, Council of Federal
Libraries
53