The suggestion that the Association become a trade union simply does not stand up under considered scrutiny. How would a "trade union for library staff" act effectively? It could not negotiate collective agreements or take effective industrial action because it would be dealing with a wide diversity of employers in different employment sectors, all of whom already have trade union structures which are recognized by the employer and the TUC. This suggestion would achieve nothing of significance.

This seems to me a classic example of the LA's unresponsiveness. "No, it's too difficult"
Bob, for a lot of us this is no longer a matter of concern. We're thinking about leaving the profession because it's impossible to make a living wage. In Oxford the average house price must be over 150k, and a lot of us (graduates with experience) are working for under 20k. This is a crisis, and it demands a better response than "No, you should be worrying about professional development"

Does librarianship have a case such as the recent one won by speech therapists? They went to the European Union as a graduate profession where most people are women and compared with other graduate professions where men are in the majority they won the case for higher salaries on the basis of equal opportunities. Speech therapists are now paid on equivalent salaries to graduate professions, I don't know the exact details, but one individual now tells me she is considerably better off, albeit after a lifetime on unequal pay.
Could the Prof Dept in the LA look into this, or a lawyer?

Margot Lindsay

Thanks, both of you. The point about equal opportunities is very interesting, Margot. There is of course a long-held view that the salaries of library staff in traditional areas of our profession start from a low base because of the now-thankfully-outdated "women who will work for pin money" view of wage structures. I think the single status job evaluation programme which is currently being rolled out across local authorities is an attempt to counter this - and that programme might be one way in which we could work towards improved pay for library staff in the public library sector. Anyone out there who knows more about single status job evaluation and its impact on library jobs? But I'll certainly take up your point about checking the legal precedents on this - thanks.

Mike - first of all, hi again; we've corresponded on this before, I think. I take your point about the vast gulf between the (high) cost of living in an area like Oxford and the (low) pay of library staff. As someone who works in central London and used to work in Solihull, it's something I'm well aware of. It is, of course, a public sector issue not just a library staff issue - and I get exasperated when I see the government defining "key public sector workers" as nurses, teachers, and police officers. Everything that is being done by government to recruit/retain in those employment sectors should also be done for library staff - if the government is serious in its various statements about the importance of library services. I've been reading the Labour election manifesto and this has only served to increase my exasperation. What the LA needs to do about this is put maximum pressure on government to include library staff in their definition of "key public sector workers" and this will be at the top of my agenda when I get my first meeting with the incoming Minister.

Thanks to you both for commenting.

Bob, I think you are wrong to dismiss the idea of the LA becoming a union so casually. There are many professional associations which are also unions who deal with a range of employers in the various sectors. The BMA is a union as are the Professional Cricketers Association, the Professional Footballers Association and the Educational Institute of Scotland. It may well be impratical or impossible for the LA or the new body to gain union status, and the membership may well decide that we do not want to go down that road, but I think you should investigate further.

Was out yesterday, so is it too late to add a comment?
The point surely is not that the LA should transform itself into a trade union, but that it should work closely with the tus that represent its members, so we all benefit from the complementary approaches of professional body and tu.
The problem, though, is that liaison work with the major tus organising our members (Unison, AUT, MSF, the civil service unions), which was once a priority for the advisers at Ridgmount Street, has slipped off the agenda somewhat. I saw that that section is to have a new Head: perhpas his/her brief could include revitalising that work?

I agree with Tom, although I think it shouldn't preclude the LA from looking further into the whole issue of becoming a trade union. Perhaps Bob would like to comment on what liaison work the LA has been undertaking recently with the major trade unions that represent its members?