how many people work in a liberry

[stefan]

I have to vote for the public liberry budget in my town on 4/5. so yesterday I got a letter from the liberry with a budget proposal.
it starts with
salaries 2,255,964.00
benefits 628,067.00
is this crazy or what

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[stullis]

I think library's are a valuable resource for any size community. Looks like you have a very large community and probably close to 75-100 people employed.

[Sonnie Layne]

Scott has been a member a long time and spoken widely on civil circumstances/circumcicisons, so I'd be inclined to side with him/her. Sensible at least.

[Shaughnn]

The company that my wife works for creates software systems for librarys. I hear all the time about library issues; both personell and policy. I'd say that you should visit the library yourself and have a look around before you cast your vote. If the place is dissheveled and you can't seem to locate a librarian who isn't burried in paperwork, then they could probably use another hand or two. If it's tidy and the librarian is buried, the budget is probably just short of adequate. And if the place is a mess and people are just sitting around, you can grill the head librarian on that. Personally, I'd say the last example would benefit from a campaign to pull visitors into the library to cut down on the 'slacker time" of the staff.
Library budgets are tough to justify because they produces no revenue. It's a huge office staff that "appears" to consume resourses endlessly. But the social benefits of a well apportioned library with expanded accessibility are huge. On paper, the personell portin of the budget may seem extreme, but it's data taken out of context. You need to investigate how that money is distributed instead of offering arbitrary cuts. The head librarian will no doubt argue that the budget isn't enough, but that is always the case. Suggest a work-program for hign school students or even a cooperative arrangement with local social programs or even a parole board.
Best of luck,
Shaughnn