ALA-APA News

• Exodus cuts library staff by 40 percent

  By Jim Seckler, Mohave Valley Daily News (Arizona): November 28, 2012

  An Arizona library director accused of bullying has allegedly caused the exodus of 40 percent of her library’s staff. According to a former library employee, Director Danielle Krol enlists the help of a “snitch” to monitor employee Facebook discussions; requires employees to put gas in Krol’s car; and threatens protesting employees with lie detector tests.  … Read the rest

• GEO, UI reach tentative accord

  By Christine Des Garennes, The News Gazette (Illinois): November 27, 2012 

   

  After seven months of negotiations and the threat of strike, the union representing 2,400 graduate employees at the University of Illinois reached a tentative contract agreement with the university.

   

  The agreement followed a day-long bargaining session with a federal mediator, as well as a union-organized sit-in of the Graduate Employees’ Organization offices. 

   

  For more information, read the full article.

  … Read the rest

• Database of nearly 3,000 ready-for-hire candidates with disabilities awaits employers

  The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Diversity Management and Equal Opportunity, on December 5 launched the 2013 Workforce Recruitment Program database, a recruitment resource for employers seeking a diverse workforce that includes employees with disabilities.

  The database contains profiles of postsecondary students and recent graduates with disabilities, including veterans, representing a wide variety of academic backgrounds and degree levels. Candidates who are … Read the rest

Certification

• LSSC Offers Two December Webinars Introducing LSSC, Explaining Portfolio Prep

  The American Library Association-Allied Professional Association’s Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) Program will be offering two free webinars in December. Anyone interested in the programs are welcome to sign up by clicking the links below.

  December 10th, 2pm Central Time – An Introduction to the LSSC Program

  On Monday, December 10th at 2:00 pm (Central), LSSC will offer an hour-long webinar on the program and how it works. The presentation will explain the value of this certification to Library … Read the rest

HR Practice

• Advice for Working With Multi-Generational Teams

  Baby boomers, Gen Xers, Millennials: generational differences influence our values, perspectives and work behavior. HR resource website WalkTheTalk offers excellent tips for benefitting from cross-generational wisdom – and negotiating cross-generational conflict.… Read the rest

• The Customer Service Hill You Want to Die On?

  By Charles Marshall

  I was in Home Depot last week returning a few items that I didn’t need. It was a few minutes before closing time and I was in a hurry to make my return and get out of there before the lights went out. I may be a big advocate of the Customer First philosophy, but that doesn’t mean that I want to keep people from going home to their families.

  So, there I was, second in a … Read the rest

Recruitment

• ALA JobLIST Placement Center to Host Open House During Upcoming Midwinter Meeting in Seattle

  As part of its continuing efforts to provide networking opportunities for employers and job seekers, the ALA JobLIST Placement Center will host an Open House on Sunday, January 27, 2013, from 10:30am – 12:00 noon during the American Library Association’s Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, Washington.

  Representatives from various libraries and library-related companies can take advantage of the opportunity to talk with conference attendees about their specific work environments—things that make their place of employment unique. There is no cost to … Read the rest

• Google HR Bans “Silly” Interview Questions

  Google has instituted a policy banning interviewers from asking candidates “silly” questions – a reversal of Google’s previous policy of asking brain teasers of the sort listed in the widely circulated “15 Google Interview Questions that will make you feel stupid.” 

  How can your organization learn from Google’s refocusing of interview questions? Are you asking the questions that identify high-performers?

  Read more in Leadership IQ’s article.… Read the rest

Statistics

• DOL: November Sees Lowest Unemployment Since December 2008

  According to (Work in Progress), the official blog of the U.S. Department of Labor, November 2012 saw 146,000 new nonfarm payroll jobs. Furthermore, the unemployment rate fell to its lowest since December 2008 (7.7 percent). Read more.  … Read the rest

• 17% of Employers Have Fired Employees Abusing Sick Leave

  It’s no secret that many employees call in sick when they’re feeling just fine, and results of a recent survey suggest that employers crack down on perceived abuses. According to a CareerBuilder survey:

  • Nearly a third (29 percent) of employers have asked for verification of employee illness (for example, a doctor’s note)

  • Eighteen percent of surveyed employers have resorted to subterfuge, asking an employee to call a suspected faker to verify illness

  • Fourteen percent of managers surveyed have driven

  … Read the rest

Support Staff

• Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) Update

  By Nancy Bolt, LSSC Project Co-Director

  It has been a very busy summer and fall for LSSC. The big news: competencies in the 10 LSSC competency sets have been revised. With input from the LSSC Certification Review Committee, library experts and ALA Divisions, the LSSC staff prepared revised competencies. The ALA-APA Executive Board approved the new competencies on October 28, 2012. You can see the new competencies on the LSSC website. With the new competencies approved, the portfolio development … Read the rest

Work/Life

• Stress Busters

  By Beatrice Calvin

  December’s here and so are winter holidays like Christmas, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. If you celebrate during this time of year, you are undoubtedly aware of the frenzy of activities that can take place. You may also know that this is a time of year when depression and stress increase. To help keep these at bay, it behooves us to maintain an arsenal of strategies that will help us manage so that we are not overwhelmed.

  Here are … Read the rest

• CDC Offers Twelve Health and Safety Tips for the Holidays

  High expectations, rich food, over-indulgence in alcohol: the holiday season is often a time of stress and excess, and at the height of celebration it is easy to forget to care for our bodies and minds. To help combat the more negative effects of the holidays, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers excellent advice.… Read the rest

HR Law

• Holiday Pay and Bonuses: Know the Law

  Do employees need to work scheduled hours the days before and after a holiday to be eligible for holiday pay? How do you calculate holiday bonuses for nonexempt employees? Protect your organization and your staff by being clear on the legal significance of holiday pay and bonuses. Read more at HR Hero.… Read the rest

• 2013 IRS Standard Mileage Rate: 56.5 Cents Per Mile

  The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has announced that the 2013 standard mileage rate for transportation or travel expenses is 56.5 cents per mile for all miles of business use. Employers often use the rate to determine how much they will pay employees for using their personal vehicles for work-related purposes.

  For more information, view the IRS press release.… Read the rest

• Obama administration moves forward to implement health care law, ban discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions

  WASHINGTON — The Obama administration moved forward today to implement provisions in the health care law that would make it illegal for insurance companies to discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions. The provisions of the Affordable Care Act also would make it easier for consumers to compare health plans, and employers to promote and encourage employee wellness.

  “The Affordable Care Act is building a health insurance market that works for consumers,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “Thanks … Read the rest

LW Tip

• Celebrate at the ALA-APA Networking Reception this ALA Midwinter

  Experience a taste of Seattle’s nightlife at this premier social event during the ALA 2013 Midwinter Conference. Take advantage of the opportunity to reconnect with old friends and meet new people at this networking fundraiser on Saturday, January 26, 2013, from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Come and enjoy an evening filled with music, dancing and more! Proceeds from the event support the ALA Allied Professional Association’s (ALA-APA) work in promoting “the mutual professional interests of librarians and other library … Read the rest

• Panel Discussion on Availability of Library Jobs

  In the face of negative messages about the value of the library degree and the future of the profession, what can we do as library professionals and educators to send a collective message about recruitment into the profession and into libraries? Do we have reliable data about jobs and placements? Do new graduates have the skills to compete successfully in a turbulent and often tight job market? What can ALA do to support new graduates, as well as other job-hunting … Read the rest