In the past few years, the New York Public Library has sold off important assets in order to raise money to continue operations. In the same period, compensation for their top administrators has increased dramatically. (The President and CEO now makes around $800,000.) The link is to an article in the New York Times dated November 19th.
Starting salaries for librarians at NYPL continue to be at the low end of the scale for urban public libraries.
Has anyone ever studied or documented how many people leave the profession because of low salaries?
Comment by Elizabeth Neill — November 19, 2006 @ 5:24 pm
As a former NYPL employee (1993-2000), I’m still trying to climb out of the debt hole I fell into when I worked there. Any union sanctioned raise usually worked out to be about $2 more per paycheck: not even enough for one day’s commute to work.
I liked to job and the challenges, but it was impossible to survive without holding down extra jobs. Meanwhile, a former VP of (now retired) called us into a meeting once to say “Well, it’s not like we’re getting summer houses this year!” which caused a near riot.
But most all of us who left are still in the profession, just not in a public library.
Comment by Dan — November 20, 2006 @ 11:35 am
I just want to comment that the pay at NYPL is much lower than a typical public library pays. It’s at the low end of the scale for urban public libraries. Maybe if a librarian at NYPL is committed to staying in NYC and can’t stand the low pay they have to work in other types of libraries, but the situation is not the same in all cities.
Comment by Rory Litwin — November 20, 2006 @ 11:47 am
[...] Let me just add my voice to the other blogispherians who are booing the New York Public Library this week. In case you hadn’t heard, the top execs at the NYPL are making six-figure salaries…pretty significant ones, at that. In fact, the library’s president makes over $400, 000 a year. This does not include his housing allowance of $136, 000…an allowance that is moot since he owns his apartment in Manhattan. (His total compensation package brings the total to over $800,000.) Now, let’s look at the people who actually make the NYPL operate on a day-to-day basis…the librarians. NYPL librarians, according to this salary study, have the lowest starting salary of all major large library systems in the country. In fact, with cost of living adjustment taken into consideration, NYPL librarians just starting with the system, make just under $13,000 a year. No doubt, this would entitle these librarians to receive any number of welfare benefits. Librarians on welfare…not a good thing in my book. The board of the NYPL ought to consider giving its front-line staff some raises, instead of inflating the already over-inflated salaries of its top execs. Explore posts in the same categories: Uncategorized [...]
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