WHAT? LIBRARIANS WORKING IN BANKS!
One of us is really concerned that newly examinated librarians have got jobs in banks. With this observation a question is raised: What is the place of a Librarian? The biggest institution (Moi University School of Information Sciences) providing library leadership and training in Kenya has some of its graduates in Library and Information Studies working in banks- This is true.
What is wrong in the librarianship in Kenya? Are graduates having a hard time getting jobs with libraries? Is there something wrong in the curriculum? Does the curriculum actually prepare the students well for the library market?
These and many more questions remain unanswered in a country where there is a strong Library association lead by acknowledged professional librarians.
The Kenya library association has a lot to do to improve the field and to avoid LIBRARY STUDENTS OPTING TO WORK IN BANKS!
WHAT IS YOUR VIEW?
COMMENT.
What is wrong in the librarianship in Kenya? Are graduates having a hard time getting jobs with libraries? Is there something wrong in the curriculum? Does the curriculum actually prepare the students well for the library market?
These and many more questions remain unanswered in a country where there is a strong Library association lead by acknowledged professional librarians.
The Kenya library association has a lot to do to improve the field and to avoid LIBRARY STUDENTS OPTING TO WORK IN BANKS!
WHAT IS YOUR VIEW?
COMMENT.
It is true the newly examined librarians are getting jobs in banks, but the question i ask is, Do the exsiting library systems in Kenya make it easy for the young graduate to get a job in any of them? Or will I be told nothing comes on a silver platter?
ReplyDeleteRather than cry our young librarians getting jobs in banks, why not concentrate on empoewering them to further the librarianship purpose to these banks?
Folks,
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing wrong with Librarians working in banks. Librarians are trained to manage information. Information is everywhere even in banks only that banks deal mainly with financial information.
Balancing books of accounts? Yes that can even be best done by somebody with Library training. Knowledge of Basic Accounting, Classification and Indexing is all you need! Just use an accounts package like Tally which anyone who has basic accounting knowledge will be very confortable with. Tally 9.0 for example, can do anything a bank would wish. Gone are the days when Accounting seemed to be very difficult and the preserve of Accounting Professionals. ICT has demystified all of it.
Infact every one needs to learn some basic accounts to be a very effective information manager.
When you seriously think about it a librarian will be very confortable working in a bank only that we just need to change our mind set to what a librarian can do.
We just need to enrich our training programs in the information Sciences to include basic accounting...because it is true people with library training are increasingly being sought after to work in banks.
Even here in Uganda many graduates with library training are being employed in banks. It is a question of Library professionals learning to respond and appreciate the demands of the job market for Librarians!
Luyimbazi Godfrey
Kyambogo University
Kampala, Uganda.
I totally agree with Godfrey
ReplyDeleteBanks have varied departments ie. Marketing, PR, Customer Care, Research, ICT, Human Resources, to mention but a few that are not in the main stream banking. A Librarian trained today should be an all rounder able to fit into any of these blocks, including the main stream banking. Information Souncing, organization and dissemination is the key, and these know no boundaries. Elsewhere in these banks they have Information Centres/Libraries where librarians are employed but designated Bank Officers/Managers. Here they remain Information Professionals but may be transfered to the main stream banking. So what is wrong with working in a Bank in this era of job scarcity. Colleagues do spread your wings far and beyong.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lib-info-society/message/879
ReplyDeleteDear Victor, and other colleagues,
I have from time time share some ideas regarding to LIS workers'
conditions, and calls for LIS workers creation of policies, organization
and resistance see for example in 2001:
http://eprints.rclis.org/archive/00006598/ , or in 2004:
http://eprints.rclis.org/archive/00003623/ or in 2005:
http://eprints.rclis.org/archive/00004744/ . I salute this message of
Victor, respond him, at the time I elaborate on my ideas.
If these librarians work in banks or anywhere else, but in their
specialized libraries or documental information institutions then we
should not be alarmed. Besides I don't see why we should be alarmed, from
your blog one cannot see any evidence of what you say is true, I mean,
librarians working as bank tellers, not in their roles of librarians. Is
it your opinion? Was a newspaper note? Or what is it? Is it true because
you say so or where is the proof? Do you have a job's card of the
librarian worker as teller? We should not ask ourselves "what? librarians
working in banks?" but "when are we going to create true working class
unions who defend library workers at every local, national or
international level?"
Now, your opinion that library associations have a lot to do to avoid that
librarians work in banks or in any other places other than libraries
--strictu sensu-- sounds a bit of a truism. See, they may do something for
their represented members in principle, rather than in practical matters.
Library associations worldwide mostly care to fill the associations'
elected posts; to travel all around within their countries or national
regions; or continental regions; or to the next IFLA-touristic venue or
for the matter to any of the hundreds ad hoc LIS related association they
have created, of course all expenses paid by empoverished working class
tax payers who support public education from which funds fund those
representatives. All of that, rather than taking care of say creating a
worldwide WORKERS UNION of libraries and all documental information
institutions, say like Industrial Workers Union http://www.iww.org/ ,
where at international levels, continental levels, withing national,
regional or local levels.
There are not workers unions where librarians are defended from employers,
except in many cases of the government employees' unions; or unions of
universities or colleges; but they are not made specifically for
librarians, they are for governemnt employees; or university/college
employees. Which in most cases, at least in the Mexican scenario where I
am most familiar, they are always kneed or or subdued or adhered to the
government or university/colleges leaders in turn, that is, in most of the
ocassions in favour of the powerful rulling dominant classes, and against
library workers (and needless to say those unions are very corrupted and
the guys on the direction in power likewise mostly all worldwide LIS
associations keep in power direction forever or rotate in a lifetime
passing the power among likeminded friends, relatives, and so on). And
library workers when they get a monthly bonus or something they simply
subdue their political demands for economicist rotten bread crusts.
So if you expect that the library association owners who rotate power
every now and then when like-minded powerful leaders from the most local
levels up to the "self called top notched gurus" at IFLA-tours et al. who
are there mostly for getting into powerful positions and personal benefits
like traveling all over the world at the expense of poor working class tax
payers (or where do you think their salaries from government or publicly
funded universities or colleges come from?), but never or seldom to carry
out strikes elbow with elbow with library workers when they are in
trouble, it is like you expect an impossible thing.
Only a worldwide union of librarians like the International Workers
Association or the Industrial Workers of the World with branches at every
local, provincial, state, regional, national and international level,
could indeed do something like the situation you complain about. Only
true workers' unions could do something about to improve the political,
laboring and living conditions of library workers (and all sort of
workers); even to fight against the de facto corrupt unions married
forever in convenience and connivance with the ruling powerful classes who
hold perennially the powers of governments, top positions in government,
universities, colleges, private and voluntary/community sector. And don't
take me wrong, perhaps there may exist some people and library
associations who have done something good for library workers,
unfortunately we have to assess their results with inter-cosmic
microscopes because they are so scarce compared for the, i.e., more than
80 years IFLA has since founded or the more than 100 or 150 years any
other library associations have.
We do not need more local, provincial, state, national or international
library associations of ornament and shoddiness who just travel for fun
all over the world "in their so called academic travels" at the expense of
working class tax payers and who never, not even critically, radically
--forget to mention revolutionaringly--, challange the powerful dominant
classes' policies (and I question their academic probity, I'm working for
some years on a research project to assess pseudoscientific, fallacious,
and flawed research in LIS associations beginning with IFLA to address if
it's worthy too much fuss of LIS-tours for so little high excellence
research quality... will keep you posted in the months/years to come).
They also belong themselves, with microscopic exemptions, to that status
of powerful classes, or when have you seen that all the thousands or
millions librarians in the world have attended all together not many but
once to an IFLA conference? never, only the very powerful can, the rest is
politically/economically disempowered, and thus can't no matter what the
holy cows say (unless you get a scholarship, but only few get it too so
the thousands or millions librarians keep out of the LIS-tours benefits).
Now as for your alarm. I guess library workers as any other workers should
work wherever they like or wherever they could find a job, and if banks
hire librarians so be it. If librarians are hired in other places than
strictu sensu LIS jobs whether they chose them on the onset or they duties
changed inside their organizations they are also free to work wherever
they please. In scenarios from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon (UANL) where I did my
BA I found many colleagues who had so bad experience with LIS schools, and
teachers and that hated so bad that went on sales or others and never ever
again to LIS related. Others, I assume, like yourself, built up their own
businesses because LIS jobs were equal or less than cleaners jobs, even
taxi drivers got more than LIS jobs, so you see, your alarm is unsustained
on the light of diverse possibilities, which for the matter besides LIS
schools or association may have litte stake at. Capitalist markets are
pushed in diverse ways... LIS and others barely catch up with changes.
However, library workers should not wait for LIS associations or
university programs to adapt themselves for labour trends. I don't know if
your business if exclusively LIS related or you are doing other than LIS
activities? But you see, people should get their bread wherever it comes
from, I mean except from criminal activities you know what I mean. It's a
very ancient discussion which we will not end in 1 or 2 mails that comes
since the first Sumerians invented writing to precisely keep baking
accounts as the first encription records in written history and it was not
called out right "books" or "library and information science." But as I
say, if librarians need to work as bank tellers because banks do not
understand what LIS is about that only shows cristal clear evidence that
while that happens on your city or country or maybe in many countries, LIS
life-time owners of LIS associations' positions and in general
researchers, theoreticians, and not to mention practitioners have spent
more time traveling and partying in LIS-tours than solving LIS problems...
so you see?
Nevertheless, I'm certain that US ALA and perhaps others alike do some
kind of LIS jobs and corresponding salaries tabulations, and some
progressive folks do lobby legislations and so on, but again, it's more
morally prescribed than enforced by the the rule of law; US folks may
elaborate more on this. Until we don't create the mechanisms to insert LIS
and for the matter all professions in legislations under the rule of local
and national labor laws and all employers be forced by those laws, then
the rest is just as it has been, more than 100 years of too much
LIS-touristic partying, banquets, wines, and cup of teas or coffee and
less sound actual prerrogatives to LIS workers, say like GP/doctors,
lawyers, engineers since Archimedes, or Hypocrate times enjoy. And lately
the new kimeric fallacies of the dominant capitalist classes charlatans of
"information age", "information society", and "knowledge societies" are
being drilled in the world's population as the new gospel and mantra, and
there you are, LIS people don't even come to grips yet of what LIS is when
like LIS-fish are already bitting the trendy bait and thus subdued to
their rules: copyright law, patent law, and so on.
Bottomline is LIS workers elbow to elbow with all the workers of the world
should create the policies, laws and regulations that work best for the
workers' interests and resist and counter attack all the dominant
capitalist classes (and their myriad of charlatans of the fallacious
"human capital", "intellectual capital", "social capital", and
info-knowledge-absurd societies), like copyright law, patent law, and all
the artificially made barriers to information and knowledge and a true
betterment of LIS and all workers of the world; and we must fight and
resist all the time, everywhere, in every quarter, otherwise LIS and all
workers would be reduced to more degrading working and living conditions,
and in the example of my colleague they may end up more working in banks
but only cleaning the banks' toilets!
With kind regards,
For a socialized humanity
for a humanized society
For the creation of a worldwide LIS workers labor union!
Zapopan Muela
Mexican librarian
PhD candidate in Information Studies
University of Sheffield, 2007
http://directorioexit.info/consulta.php?directorio=exit&campo=ID&texto=237
--- victor kamau victorggk@yahoo.com wrote:
Just imagine, what would it feel to work in a bank?
Now, think, what is the real work or a librarian�.
Read more on this link
http://librariesunlimited.blogspot.com
And leave your say
Victor.
________________________________________________________________________________\
____
Choose the right car based on your needs. Check out Yahoo! Autos new
Car Finder tool.
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---
Zapopan Mart�n Muela Meza, MLS SUNY Buffalo, NY, EE.UU. Lic. UANL
Candidato a Doctor en Estudios de la Informaci�n
University of Sheffield, Inglaterra, Gran Breta�a
http://www.shef.ac.uk/is/research/groups/lib/people.html
http://directorioexit.info/consulta.php?directorio=exit&campo=ID&texto=237
Editor para M�xico de E-LIS: Archivo Abierto Electr�nico de Documentos en
Bibliotecolog�a y Documentaci�n
http://eprints.rclis.org/staff.html#mx
Miembro del Grupo Copia/Sur de Investigaci�n
http://www.copysouth.org
Miembro de la Red Internacional en Defensa del Conocmiento y la Cultura para
Todos
http://www.porlacultura.net/index.php
"Servirte es un placer
y satisfacer tus necesidades de informaci�n
es profesionalmente mi misi�n"
(c). D.R. 1995. Zapopan Mart�n Muela Meza
I completely agree with Zapopan Martín Muela Meza- people must survive and to survive they must work. When the appropriate working place lacks any other job would do. This is what is happening to librarians.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with him that the library associations have not been that good in delivering to their members what is due to them. But I also think that the problem could be with the people there and not the associations.
But one thing I do not agree with is the timing of the solution he offers. By creating a worldwide LIS workers labor union, we will be creating another association, another group of librarians with the almost the same duties as the existing associations. What would prevent the new group of librarians whatever the level- national, regional, continental or worldwide- from being as bad or as good as the existing associations?
The solutions Zapopan Martín Muela Meza gives is very appropriate but not at this time when the librarians in leadership positions cannot be trusted. We need first to solve the problem within the associations. How?
1. Elect in trusted, honest leaders.
2. Have in place an agreed upon constitution.
3. Educated librarians on their rights within their working places and within the library associations.
4. Eradicate discrimination within the associations according to academic level.
When we have brought up a new breed of librarians that can be trusted to deliver on the promises of the association/unions/organizations, then we can start working from within to without, we can have a union to fight for the rights of librarians worldwide or any other level.
But with the right people in leadership positions, only the right people to be led will be required to achieve any goal set forth.
hey i hold bachelors degree in library and information science,but currently am working in a bank because i didn't get a job as a librarian.I like my profession as a librarian but i have to survive and thats why am working in the bank.
ReplyDeleteWAMBUI,KENYA.