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Library Manpower:

A Study of Demand

and Supply

Bulletin 1852

U. S. Department of Labor 

Bureau of Labor Statistics

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U nited S ta te s . Bureau o f Labor S t a t i s t i c s .

L ib rary manpower.

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Library Manpower:

A Study of Demand

and Supply

Bulletin 1852

U. S. Department of Labor 

Peter J. Brennan, Secretary

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

.Julius Shiskin, Commissioner

1975

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, GPO Bookstores, or

BLS Regional Offices listed on inside back cover. Price $1.75.

Make checks payable to Superintendent of Documents.

Stock Number 029-001-01367

Cat. No. L2.3:1852

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Preface

This bulletin presents the results of a study of library manpower demand and supply 

conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the U.S. Office of Education. The 

primary objectives of the study are the identification and analysis of factors which 

influence manpower needs, and the development of projections of demand for library 

personnel.

The bulletin was prepared in the Bureau’s Division of Manpower and Occupational 

Outlook by Anne S. Kahl and Mary I. DeLaVergne under the supervision of Michael J. 

Pilot.

Grateful acknowledgement is made to staff members of the Office of Education for 

their interest and support. Dr. Frank L. Schick of the National Center for Educational 

Statistics was largely responsible for initiating the study, and provided constructive 

advice during every phase of the research. Assistance from the Division of Library 

Programs was provided by Henry T. Drennan.

The Bureau also acknowledges the cooperation of many people in the library 

community. Comments on the study were received from representatives of the 

American Library Association, Special Libraries Association, and Council on Library 

Technology; and from consultants, educators, administrators, and practicing librarians. 

Special gratitude goes to the librarians who gave so generously and helpfully of their 

time during the interview phase of the study.

in

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P re fa c e ......................................................................................................................................................................................iii

Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................................................ix

H ighlights..................................................................................................................................................................................xi

Chapter 1. Current manpower situation

Employment t r e n d s ................................................................................................................................................. 1

Geographic distribution ......................................................................................................................................... 6

Staffing patterns ..................................................................................................................................................... 6

Demographic characteristics .....................................................................................................................................12

Educational attainment .............................................................................................................................................16

E arn in g s.........................................................................................................................................................................20

Hiring and recruitment ex p erien ce............................................................................................................................ 22

Minority i s s u e s ............................................................................................................................................................ 25

Chapter 2. Projections of manpower demand

Factors affecting g r o w t h ............................................................................................................................................ 29

Estimates of demand in 1980 and 1985 ................................................................................................................ 36

Specific occupational needs—a qualitative

assessm ent.................................................................................................................................................................39

Replacement needs .................................................................................................................................................... 42

Chapter 3. Projections of manpower supply

New college g ra d u a te s ................................................................................................................................................ 44

Other sources of supply ............................................................................................................................................ 44

Library attendants and assistants ............................................................................................................................ 46

Chapter 4. Outlook and implications

New graduates and others ........................................................................................................................................ 48

Training program s.........................................................................................................................................................50

Tables:

1. Estimated employment of librarians and library attendants and

assistants by type of library, 1960 and 1970 ............................................ 2

2. Trends in enrollments, instructional staff, and

library staff in colleges and universities, 1959—60 to 1970—71 , 5

3. Employment of special librarians by major industry

group and selected industries, 1970 .................................................................................... ... . 6

4. Employment of librarians and library attendants

and assistants, by State, 1970 7

5. Employment of librarians and library attendants and

assistants by type of library and sex, 1970 ............................................................................................. 14

6. Occupational distribution of the male experienced civilian labor

force by years of school completed, 1970 (in p e rc e n t)........................................................................ 19

7. Occupational distribution of the female experienced civilian

labor force by years of school completed, 1970 (in percent) ............................................................ 19

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Tables—Continued

8. Earnings distribution of the male experienced civilian labor

force who worked 50 to 52 weeks in 1969, by selected

occupation (in percent) ............................................................ . . 20

9. Earnings distribution of the female experienced civilian labor

force who worked 50 to 52 weeks in 1969, by selected

occupation (in percent) ............................................................ .21

10. Mean full-year earnings in 1969 and male/female earnings ratio

of the experienced civilian labor force and selected

occupations, by sex ............................................................ *22

11. Earnings distribution of the male experienced civilian labor

force for selected occupations in 1969 ................................ - 2 3

12. Earnings distribution of the female experienced civilian

labor force for selected occupations in 1969 ................ . 2 4

13. Employment in the educational services industry,

estimated 1960 and 1970, and projected 1980 and 1985 . * 3 7

14. Projected employment requirements for librarians,

by type of library, 1970-85 ................................................ .33

15. Average annual rates of change in employment of librarians,

by type of library, 1960—70 and projected 1970—80 and 1980—85 . . 33

16. Projected employment requirements for library attendants

and assistants by type of library, 1970—85 ........................ .39

17. Average annual rates of change in employment of library

attendants and assistants, by type of library,

1960—70 and projected 1970—80 and 1980—85 ................................................................................ 39

18. Estimated openings for librarians, 1960—85 ............................................................................................ 43

19. Estimated openings for library attendants and assistants, 1960—85 ........................................................ 43

20. Supply-demand situation for librarians, 1960—70

and projected 1970—80 and 1980—85 .... .49

Charts:

1. Employment of librarians in public and private colleges

and universities, 1962—71 ............................................ . 4

2. Employment of librarians and library attendants and

assistants by sex and type of library, 1970 ............................................................................................ 13

3. Employment of librarians by age and sex, 1970 .......................................................................................... 15

4. Years of school completed by librarians and library

attendants and assistants, 1960 and 1970 .................... . 1 8

5. Annual rate of change in elementary—secondary school

enrollments, 1960-71 and projected 1972—85 .... .30

6. Estimated number of annual job openings for librarians

resulting from growth and replacement needs, 1960-70

and projected 1970—85 ........................................................ . . 42

7. Number of library science bachelor’s and master’s

degrees, 1960—61 to 1971—72 and projected

1972-73 to 1984-85 . 4 5

Appendixes:

A. Coverage, definitions, data sources

and projection methods ............................................................................................................................ 52

B. Sample d e s ig n .................................................................................................................................................... 61

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Appendixes—Continued

C. Staff position descriptions.................................................................................................................................63

D. Questionnaire g u id e.............................................................................................................................................64

E. Bibliography.........................................................................................................................................................83

F. Detailed tables .................................................................................................................................................89

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Introduction

Background

Manpower problems have been a major concern of 

the library profession since the early 1960’s. The 

existence of a library manpower shortage drew national 

attention when, in 1967, the American Library Association announced that the scarcity of professional librarians had reached crisis proportions. For the next few 

years, the profession sought to ameliorate the situation 

by actively recruiting persons for careers in librarianship, 

lobbying for increased aid for library education, and 

encouraging job redesign. These efforts were largely 

successful. By 1970, however, the situation had changed 

completely. The need for ever-growing numbers of 

library personnel began to wane because of government 

austerity budgets and declining school enrollments. In 

short order, libraries were swamped by job applicants, 

and new library school graduates were having difficulty 

finding jobs. This abrupt shift in conditions of demand 

and supply has serious implications for library education 

programs, for officials concerned with student and 

university financial support* and for individuals considering a career in librarianship. The situation gave rise to 

wide-spread apprehension within the library community 

as to the prospective employment outlook.

Study objectives

Additional research was needed in order to identify 

the place of library personnel within the spectrum of 

prospective supply-demand conditions for professional 

and related manpower. While studies conducted by the 

Bureau of Labor Statistics in the late 1960’s pointed to 

an overall balance between supply and demand for 

college graduates by the end of the 1970’s, individual 

occupations were expected to experience situations 

varying from excess demand to excess supply.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics as part of its occupational outlook program had developed projections of 

manpower requirements for professional librarians. However, these needs had not been broken down by 

employment setting, namely: School, public, academic, 

and special libraries. Data also were lacking on the

functions of individuals employed in libraries in both 

professional and nonprofessional categories.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics was awarded a 

contract to develop information that would help fill 

existing data gaps and present a comprehensive view of 

library manpower through the mid-1980’s. The award 

followed discussions in early 1972 between the staffs of 

the BLS and the U.S. Office of Education’s National 

Center for Educational Statistics and Division of Library 

Programs. The study was designed to develop projections 

of employment requirements by employment setting 

and occupational level, and to provide information on 

job functions and educational requirements—and how 

each is changing.

Methods

The study entailed two major collection phases. Phase 

1 consisted of a detailed search of existing literature for 

statistics and other relevant information. All available 

U.S. Office of Education data were provided to the BLS. 

Library periodicals and related publications were 

exam ined. A literature search by the ERICClearinghouse on Library and Information Sciences 

provided useful information on recently published 

studies dealing with various aspects of library manpower 

under study by the BLS. Representatives of the American Library Association and others knowledgeable in the 

field were consulted for advice and assistance as well as 

for leads to ongoing studies.

Valuable information also was obtained through 

participation, attendance, and discussion at annual and 

mid-winter American Library Association meetings and 

annual conferences of the Council on Library Technology. Phase 2 was the personal interview stage. About 

100 personal visits were conducted from February 

through May 1973 with head librarians, library administrators, personnel officers, and other employer representatives to obtain information on staffing patterns, job 

functions, education and training needs, and manpower 

problems in the library field. Information also was 

sought to identify the factors that have the greatest 

bearing on library manpower requirements. Appendix B

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presents a brief description of the procedures used in 

selecting the sample. An interview guide was developed 

to ensure that the information collected by the interviewers was obtained and recorded in a consistent 

manner. A copy of the interview guide is included in this 

report as appendix D. Appendix C presents a list of job 

descriptions developed for use in conjunction with the 

interview guide.

The figures for 1970 employment presented in this 

bulletin are BLS estimates based on current and historical data available from the U.S. Office of Education, 

U.S. Bureau of the Census, BLS, and other sources. 

Detailed information on sources of data, an explanation 

of the reason certain sources were considered preferable 

to others, and a description of the procedures used in 

developing the estimates are presented in appendix A. 

Projections of manpower requirements were developed 

within the framework of the BLS model of the economy 

in 1985.

Assumptions underlying the BLS model and a description of the projection methods also are presented in 

appendix A.

Techniques established in other BLS studies were 

used to estimate replacement needs resulting from 

deaths and retirements.

The analysis of supply of librarians was based on 

National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) estimates and projections of earned degrees in library 

science. Estimates of the proportion of new graduates 

entering the field were developed largely on the basis of 

various followup studies and surveys that provide information on past patterns of labor force entry of college 

graduates (including teachers and school librarians). A 

general paucity of data prevented development of 

projections of supply for library attendants and assistants.

Unless otherwise noted, all tables and charts presented in the report reflect BLS estimates.

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Highlights

Employment in libraries is expected to grow more 

slowly over the 1970—85 period than it did during the 

decade of the 1960’s. The total number of persons in 

library occupations is projected to rise to 374,000 in 

1985 from about 235,000 in 1970. In line with recent 

trends, employment of library attendants and assistants 

is expected to rise more sharply than that of librarians, 

as nonprofessional staff members are assigned increasing 

responsibility for routine library work. Between 1970 

and 1985, total librarian employment is projected to rise 

to 162,000 from 115,000, or 41 percent; employment 

of attendants and assistants is expected to increase to

212,000 from 120,000, or 77 percent. Compared to the 

rapid expansion which took place in the 1960’s—much 

of it stimulated by unprecedented levels of Federal 

support for library services—employment growth over 

the projected period is expected to be much slower. 

Furthermore, growth is expected to be slowest during 

the 1970’s, with much of the overall 1970—85 increase 

occurring after 1980.

Employment of school librarians is projected to grow 

to nearly 80,000 by 1985, from 52,000 in 1970. Much 

of this growth will not occur until the 1980’s, when 

school enrollments are projected to turn sharply upward.

Employment of public librarians is projected to rise 

to 33,000 by 1985 from 26,500 in 1970. Contributing 

to the relatively slow growth of librarian employment in 

public libraries is the increasing use of paraprofessional 

personnel.

Employment of academic librarians is projected to 

rise to 27,000 in 1985 from 19,000 in 1970. Most of 

this growth will occur during the 1970’s. Employment 

growth in academic libraries is expected to come to a 

virtual halt after 1980 because of the anticipated drop in 

college-level enrollments beginning in the late 1970’s.

Employment of special librarians is projected to rise 

from 17,000 to 22,500 between 1970 and 1985. The 

demand for special librarians reflects the changing 

occupational patterns in those industries employing 

special librarians.

The main source of demand for librarians through 

1985 will be replacement requirements. The number of 

librarians needed to replace those who retire, die, or 

leave the labor force for other reasons will greatly

exceed the number required to fill newly added positions. Over the entire 1970—85 period, replacement 

needs are expected to account for three quarters of the 

job openings for librarians—compared to less than half 

the openings in the 1960’s.

To meet projected requirements for growth and for 

replacement, job openings for librarians are expected to 

average 11,200 a year between 1970 and 1985. Based on 

past patterns of entry into the profession by new 

bachelor’s and master’s library science degree recipients, 

an estimated 9,000 new graduates are likely to enter the 

labor force as librarians every year from 1970 to 1985. 

This means that the number of jobs open to persons 

other than new graduates is likely to be sharply 

curtailed. Only 2,200 jobs a year are expected to be 

available to persons seeking reentry, delayed entry, or 

transfer to the occupation. While in the 1960—70 

period, new graduates filled about 40 percent of all 

openings, they will be available to fill 80 percent of 

openings created by growth and replacement needs in 

the 1970—85 period. The employment situation for 

persons other than new graduates is likely to deteriorate 

accordingly.

Educational requirements for beginning librarians 

have been upgraded substantially in the past 5 to 10 

years. Data from the survey show that the master’s 

degree in librarianship is required for employment in 

virtually all academic libraries. Large public libraries 

generally require the master’s degree, and many special 

libraries do so as well. Few school libraries formally 

require the master’s degree in librarianship, but in 

practice, school administrators may give preference to 

candidates with the library science master’s. As a result, 

job prospects in the 1970’s and 1980’s for entering 

librarians without the graduate degree in librarianship 

appear to be limited. Such openings probably will be 

found, for the most part, in small libraries where the 

salary level is too low to attract fully trained personnel.

Since 1970, the job market for librarians has been 

tight. For the jobseeker, the current situation contrasts 

unfavorably with that 5 to 10 years ago. Respondents to 

this survey were almost unanimous in describing the 

transition from a shortage of library manpower in the 

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supply,” coupled with fewer job openings, in 1972. 

Beginning librarians are easiest to find, according to the 

libraries surveyed. Librarians with highly specialized 

training, and those with appropriate experience, are 

harder to find. In contrast to the anticipated tight job 

market for beginning librarians throughout the 1970—85

period, demand is expected to remain strong for black 

and other minority librarians, community outreach 

librarians, media/audiovisual specialists, and library automation specialists. Experienced library administrators 

and supervisory librarians are also expected to continue 

in strong demand.

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Chapter 1. Current Manpower Situation

Employment trends

An estimated 235,000 persons1 were employed in 

library occupations in 1970, more than twice as many as 

in 1960. The 1970 figure includes 115,000 librarians and

120,000 library attendants and assistants. (See table 1.) 

The latter category is made up of persons employed in a 

variety of library-related occupations at the nonprofessional level.

School librarians. Nearly half of all librarians in the 

United States were employed in school libraries in 1970 

as shown in the following tabulation:

Percent distribution

Type o f library Librarians

Library attendants

and assistants

Public ............................... ..........23 38

School............................... ..........45 16

Academ ic .......................... ..........17 33

Special............................... ..........15 13

The dominance of elementary and secondary schools 

in total library employment has important manpower 

implications, because the educational preparation of 

school librarians, the State certification requirements 

which most of them must meet, and their day-to-day job 

duties differ in significant respects from those of other 

librarians.

According to BLS estimates, more than 90 percent of 

school librarians employed in 1970 worked in 17,500 

public school systems; the remainder were employed by 

non pub lie schools, which numbered about 18,000 in 

1970.2 School librarians generally work in libraries in 

the school building. However, some perform central 

services at system or district headquarters, or work as 

school library supervisors at the district or State levels.

In secondary schools, public and nonpublic, school 

library services were virtually universal by the early 

1970’s. At the elementary level, however, library programs tended to be more limited in scope, and less

1 Full-time and part-time personnel. The methods used to

derive these estimates, as well as information on coverage,

definitions, and data sources, are presented in appendix A.

adequately staffed. Few small elementary schools can 

support the full-time services of a professionally trained 

librarian. Indeed, most of the 6,000 small school systems 

surveyed by the Office of Education in 19703 employed 

no librarians at all. In small public systems and in many 

nonpublic elementary schools, the library staff, if there 

is any at all, generally consists of a part-time teacherlibrarian assisted by student or parent volunteers. At the 

opposite end of the spectrum are the large city and 

county public school systems. In fall 1970, the Nation’s 

192 largest public school systems—each with an enrollment of at least 25,000 students—employed more than 

one-fourth of all public school librarians. Twenty-six of 

these school systems employed more than 100 full-time 

equivalent librarians each.4 School systems employing 

the largest number of librarians in 1970 were Chicago, 

New York City, and Dade County, Fla.

School libraries grew rapidly during the 1960’s. 

Employment of librarians rose to 52,000 from 30,900 

between 1960 and 1970, an average annual rate of 

increase of 5.3 percent. Very little of this growth was 

associated with rising enrollments, since the increase in 

enrollments tapered off throughout the decade, and by 

1970, had stopped altogether.

The main reason for the rapid growth of school 

libraries during the 1960’s was heightened public con2In fall 1970, there were 17,498 operating public school

systems with a total enrollment of over 45 million pupils

attending approximately 64,000 elementary schools, 24,000

secondary schools, and 2,000 combined elementary-secondary

schools. In addition, over 5 million pupils were enrolled in

14,400 nonpublic elementary schools and 3,800 nonpublic

secondary schools. See Education Directory, 1970, Public

School Systems (Office of Education, 1971), p. 6 and Digest o f

Educational Statistics, 1972 edition (Office of Education, 1973),

p. 12.

3 The results for 1970 of the annual sample survey of all

public school systems in the United States appear in Statistics o f

Local Public School Systems, Fall 1970, Staff (Office of

Education, 1973, OE 73-11415). The publication shows the

number of librarians, library aides and audiovisual staff members

employed in public school systems according to enrollment size

category. The smallest category comprises approximately 6,000

systems enrolling fewer than 300 pupils each.

4 These figures do not include the schools’ separately reported audiovisual staff, a total of 2,705 persons in 1970.

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Type of library

1960 1970 1960-70 average annual

rate of growth1

Total Librarians

Library

attendants

and

assistants

Total Librarians

Library

attendants

and

assistants

Total Librarians

Library

attendants

and

assistants

Total, all libraries .. 106,000 69,000 37,000 235,000 115,000 120,000 8.3 5.2 12.5

School ........................................ (2) 30,900 (2) 71,000 52,000 19,000 (2) 5.3 (2)

Public........................................... (2) 17,700 (2) 71,500 26,500 45,000 (2) 4.1 (2)

Academ ic.................................... (2) 10,400 o 59,500 19,500 40,000 (2) 6.5 (2)

Special......................................... (2) 10,000 (2) 33,000 17,000 16,000 (2) 5.5 (2)

1 C om pounded.

2 N o t available.

cern and support for quality education for all children. 

This led directly to the Elementary and Secondary 

Education Act (ESEA) of 1965 and other legislation 

under which the Federal Government, for the first time, 

expended large amounts of money in support of 

elementary and secondary education, specifically including school libraries. Between 1966 and 1973, nearly 

$617 million in ESEA Title II funds had been made 

available for the purchase of printed and audiovisual 

school library materials. Availability of ESEA funds has 

led to an increase in the number of school libraries and 

to a significant improvement in school library collections 

and services.

Public librarians. In 1970, nearly 1 out of every 4 

librarians, or 26,500, worked in a public library.

There is great diversity in the 8,800 public libraries 

serving towns, cities, and larger political units.5 They 

differ in the size and character of the areas they serve; 

the social, economic, and racial composition of the 

populations they serve; the type and scope of the 

programs they offer; and the size, duties, and professional preparation of their staffs. The 1,700 or so large 

public libraries serve areas of 25,000 inhabitants or more 

each and employ about 75 percent of all public 

librarians. The remainder of the librarians are employed 

in about 7,100 small libraries serving villages and rural 

areas.6

5 In preparation for a survey to be conducted in 1975, the

Office of Education has identified a public library universe of

8,769 libraries. Of these, 1,664 libraries serve 25,000 inhabitants

or more each, and 7,105 serve less than 25,000.

6 In 1962, the most recent year for which such data are

available, nearly 77 percent of all public library staff members

(nonprofessional and maintenance staff, as well as professional

librarians) were employed in libraries which served areas of

25,000 inhabitants or more. The remainder were employed in

libraries serving 25,000 inhabitants or less.

Results of the National Center for Educational 

Statistics’ 1968 survey of public libraries serving areas 

with 25,000 inhabitants or more show the great concentration of public libraries in a small number of areas.7 

Fewer than 100 libraries employed over half the entire 

staff reported by the libraries covered by the survey. The 

largest public libraries, in terms of 1968 staff size, were 

those serving major metropolitan areas: The New York 

Public Library, Brooklyn Public library, Queens 

Borough Public Library, Chicago Public Library, Free 

Library of Philadelphia, Los Angeles Public Library, and 

Los Angeles County Public Library.

Employment growth also was rapid in public libraries 

in the 1960’s. Employment of librarians increased to

26.500 from 17,700 between 1960 and 1970—an 

average annual rate of 4.1 percent.

Academic librarians. An estimated 19,500 librarians, or 

1 out of every 6, were employed in the Nation’s

2.500 college and university libraries in 1970. Fall 1971 

survey data for several categories of academic library 

personnel are shown in appendix table 1. According to 

the 1971 survey, nearly 45 percent of all academic 

librarians worked in universities, 42 percent worked in 

4-year colleges, and 13 percent worked in 2-year 

institutions—primarily community colleges and junior 

colleges.8 Public institutions employed 3 out of every 5 

academic librarians, and the proportion is rising. Colleges 

and universities enrolling 10,000 students

7 The survey results appear in Statistics of Public Libraries

Serving Areas with at least 25,000 Inhabitants, 1968 (Office of

Education, 1970, OE-15068-68). The publication presents data

on “library staff” and “maintenance staff” employed in each of

1,059 reporting libraries, as well as aggregated data distributed

by population size class. This survey is conducted every 3 years;

results for 1971 are scheduled for publication in 1975.

8Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities, Fall 1971

Analytic Report (Part C) (Office of Education, 1973, OE-74-

11417).

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or more employed nearly half of the academic librarians 

in 1971; the remainder were in smaller institutions, as 

shown in the following tabulation:

Percent distribution

Enrollment size of institution of librarians

All colleges and universities..................... 100.0

10,000 students or m o re............................................. 47.8

5.000- 9,999 students ................................................. 17.9

1.000- 4,999 students ................................................. 23.4

500-999 students ............................................................ 6.6

Fewer than 500 students................................................ 4.3

Over 200 academic libraries in the United States had 

a professional staff of at least 20 persons each and 22 

libraries employed at least 100 professionals each.9 Most 

academic libraries were much smaller, however. Six out 

of 10 libraries employed fewer than five professional 

staff members each in 1971. The percent distribution of 

all 2,535 academic libraries by number of professional 

staff members is show below:

Size of full-time equivalent professional Percent o f libraries

staff

100 or more ....................................................................... 0.9

50 to 9 9 .9 ............................................................................ 2.0

20 to 4 9 .9 .................................................... 5.3

10 to 1 9 .9 ............................................................................ 9.5

5 to 9 . 9 ...................................................................................21.5

3 to 4 . 9 ...................................................................................25.4

2 to 2 .9 ...................................................................................17.6

1 to 1 .9 ...................................................................................16.6

Less than 1 .......................................................................... 1.2

The mean number of full-time equivalent professional 

staff members in 1971 was 8.6.

Although libraries of every type experienced substantial employment growth during the 1960’s, academic 

libraries grew the most rapidly. (See table 1.) The 

number of academic librarians almost doubled, rising to

19,500 from 10,400 between 1960 and 1970, an average 

annual rate of increase of 6.5 percent. This growth 

reflects the extraordinary rise in college-level enrollments during the 1960’s, the post-Sputnik commitment 

to strengthen the Nation’s research and development 

capability, and the massive infusion of Federal funds in 

support of higher education. Table 2 illustrates the 

upward trends, during the 1960’s, in college-level enrollments, instructional staff, and library staff.

Employment of academic librarians increased much 

more rapidly in publicly controlled institutions than in 

private ones during the 1960’s. (See chart 1.) Indeed,

9 “Professional staff,” as used in the National Center for

Educational Statistics’ academic library surveys, comprises 1)

librarians, and 2) other staff members whose work requires

completion of a bachelor’s degree. In 1971, librarians constituted nearly 86 percent of all professional staff members

employed in academic libraries.

1971 survey data show a slight decline in the number of 

librarians in private colleges and universities.10 * The 

relative importance, in terms of employment, of public 

colleges and universities has increased accordingly. 

Public institutions employed over 62 percent of all 

academic librarians in 1971, compared to 52 percent 10 

years before.

Special librarians. An estimated 17,000 special librarians 

were employed in the United States in 1970. The field 

of special librarianship is in fact many disparate fields, 

linked by a distinctive emphasis on subject matter and 

on service to the user. Special librarians are employed 

throughout the economy, as shown in table 3 } 1

Chiefly because of definitional and conceptual differences, the data in table 3 are not comparable with 

estimates of special librarian employment based on 

several recent surveys.12 Medical librarianship and law 

librarianship rank among the most important specialties 

within the field of special librarianship, and the Federal 

Government is a principal employer of special librarians. 

In addition, many special librarians are employed in 

company or corporation libraries in engineering, science 

and technology, business, the social sciences, or publishing. Others work for foundations, associations, and 

organizations which have special collections in history, 

literature, or the arts.

Employment of special librarians rose to approximately 17,000 from 10,000 between 1960 and 1970, an 

average annual rate of increase of 5.5 percent. The 

number of special libraries grew to about 13,000 in 1968 

from about 8,500 in 1963.13 Special libraries appear to 

be more sensitive than others to fluctuations in economic conditions. BLS survey results show that some special

10Library Statistics of Colleges and Universities, Fall 1969

Analytic Report (Office of Education, 1971, DHEW 12-1 A),

p. 17, and Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities, Fall

1971 Analytic Report (Part C) (Office of Education, 1973,

OE-74-11417), p. 12.

11 “Educational services” is an industry group made up of

elementary and secondary education; colleges and universities

(public) libraries; and educational services, not elsewhere classified.

12Of principal importance are the 1969 survey of medical

and health sciences libraries, the annual survey of law school

libraries, and the 1972 survey of Federal libraries. These are

discussed in appendix A.

13Anthony T. Kruzas, Directory o f Special Libraries and

Information Centers (Detroit, Gale Research Company, 1963),

and Anthony T. Kruzas, Directory o f Special Libraries and

Information Centers, 2d edition (Detroit, Gale Research Company, 1968). In addition, Kruzas has published Encyclopedia o f

Information Systems and Sources (Ann Arbor, Edwards

Brothers, 1971), which inventories those organizations whose

methods of information storage and retrieval are based on new,

automated technologies.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Chart 1

... 

Employment of librarians in public and private colleges

and universities, 1962-71

Number

20,000

1962 63 64 65

Source: National Center for Educational Statistics

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Year

Enrollment

(1,000's)

Instructional

staff

(1,000's)

Library staff1

Total Librarians Other

professionals

Nonprofessionals

1959-60 .......... 2,954 202 18,000 9,000 700 8,300

1960-61 .......... 3,200 214 (2> (2) (2) (2)

1961-62 ......... 3,455 228 21,100 10,300 800 10,000

1962-63 .......... 3,696 242 ( 2) (2) (2) (2)

1963-64 .......... 4,115 274 25,200 11,900 1,000 12,300

1964-65 .......... 4,671 317 ( 2) (2) (2) (2)

1965-66 .......... 5,070 351 ( 2) (2) (2) (2)

1966-67 .......... 5,480 378 (2) (2) (2) (2)

1967-68 .......... 5,954 414 43,500 17,400 2,000 24,100

1968-69 .......... 6,344 444 45,150 17,695 2,454 25,001

1969-70 .......... 6,721 468 (2) (2) (2) (2)

1970-71 .......... 7,178 501 48,211 18,295 3,054 26,862

1 Library staff figures are actual survey results except the

1959-60, 1961-62, and 1963-64 data for “other professionals”

and for “nonprofessionals,” which have been adjusted to

compensate for a refinement in the definitions introduced in

1967. Prior to that, “other professionals” (staff members other

than librarians whose work normally requires completion of a

least a bachelor’s degree) were not separately reported, and most

respondents classified them as “nonprofessionals.”

libraries suffered during the business slowdown in 

1969-70. In certain industries—notably engineering and 

aerospace—special libraries were reduced in staff, or 

closed entirely, because of drastic budget cuts.14

Library attendants and assistants. An estimated 120,000 

persons worked as library attendants and assistants in 

1970 compared to 37,000 in 1960. (See table 1.) This is 

an annual average increase of 12.5 percent. Approximately two additional library attendants and assistants 

took jobs for each librarian added to the labor force 

during the 1960’s. For the most part, the increase is 

attributable to greater use of nonprofessionals in library 

work to perform work once done by professionals.

More than one-third of the attendants and assistants 

worked in public libraries, and another one-third worked 

in academic libraries. School libraries, though predominant in employment of librarians, employed only 16 

percent of all attendants and assistants. Special libraries 

employed some 13 percent of the total.

Hours worked. Part-time employment is very high in 

library occupations. One in every three librarians worked 

part time (that is, fewer than 35 hours a week) in 1970 

as did roughly 2 out of 3 library attendants and

14 The vulnerability of special libraries to shifts in the

economic climate is discussed by Bill M. Woods in “The Special

Library Concept of Service,” American Libraries, July-August

1972, pp. 759-68.

2 Not available.

NOTE: The employment data in this table are expressed in

“full-time equivalents” (full-time personnel plus full-time equivalent of part-time personnel) and therefore are not comparable

with the BLS estimates shown in table 1, which include both

full-time and part-time personnel.

SOURCE: National Center for Educational Statistics.

assistants, according to data from the 1970 census on 

number of hours worked.15

Part-time employment seems to be more significant in 

librarianship than in many other occupations. For 

professional, technical, and kindred workers as a whole, 

about 20 percent worked part time in 1970, compared 

to 34 percent of the librarians. And on the nonprofessional level, about 23 percent of all clerical workers were 

employed part time in 1970, compared to nearly 63 

percent of the library attendants and assistants. It should 

be noted that these data do not provide a breakdown of 

full-time and part-time employment in different types of 

libraries. Thus, although use of part-time nonprofessional personnel is believed to be quite extensive in large 

public libraries (for one thing, pages generally work part 

time), the census data are not detailed enough for 

comparisons of the use of part-time personnel in 

different types of libraries.

1 5For detail, see pp. 747-65 of Census o f Population: 1970,

Occupational Characteristics, Subject Reports, Final Report

PC(2)-7A (Bureau of the Census, 1973). Data on the number of

hours worked during a particular week are presented for more

than 400 occupations, including librarian and library attendant

and assistant. These data, based on a 5-percent sample of the

population enumerated in 1970, represent the number of hours

actually worked in a particular “reference” week, and do not

necessarily reflect the number of hours usually worked or the

scheduled number of hours. Classified as “part time” are persons

who worked 1 to 34 hours during the reference week.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Industry group Percent distribution

Total, all industries................... lOO.b

Agriculture, forestry, and fisheries.......... 0.1

M in in g ............................................................ .6

Construction ............................................... 1.2

M anufacturing............................................. 20.6

Transportation, communications,

and other u tilitie s ................................. 1.9

Wholesale and retail trade.......................... 3.5

Finance, insurance, and

real e s ta te ................................................ 4.8

Services, excluding educational

services.................................................... 47.6

Miscellaneous business

services........................................ 5.2

Medical, other health

services......................................... 6.1

Legal services.................................... 8.7

Religious organizations................... 9.5

Nonprofit membership

organizations............................... 6.6

Professional and related

services......................................... 5.8

Governm ent.................................................. 19.6

Geographic distribution

More than half of the Nation’s librarians are employed in nine States: New York, California, Illinois, 

Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Michigan, Massachusetts, and 

New Jersey, according to 1970 census data. The concentration of library manpower is heaviest in the Middle 

Atlantic and East North Central regions, as shown in 

table 4 .16 This is about the same as the distribution of 

all professional and technical workers, both being 

associated fairly closely with population density. The 

geographic distribution of library attendants and assistants follows that of librarians.

A comparison with 1960 data shows that although 

employment of librarians rose sharply over the decade, 

distribution by region changed very little. (See appendix 

table 2.) The nine leading States included a somewhat 

smaller percent of all U.S. librarians in 1970 than in 

1960, but there were only slight changes in rank order. 

New York, California, and Illinois together included 24 

percent of the Nation’s librarians in 1970, compared to 

26 percent in 1960.

The greatest number of new jobs for librarians in the 

1960’s were in the largest States. In New York, for 1

1 6 Additional detail from the census, including 1970 employment by sex and 1960-70 growth, may be found in appendix

tables 2,3, and 4. Office of Education data on the geographic

distribution of manpower employed in academic libraries and

school libraries appear in appendix tables 5 and 6.

example, the number of librarians rose by more than

4,000 between 1960 and 1970. In California, in Pennsylvania, and in Texas, employment of librarians increased 

by 3,000. Substantial employment growth also took 

place in the following States, each of which employed at 

least 1,000 more librarians in 1970 than it had in 1960: 

Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, 

Virginia, and Wisconsin. (See appendix table 4.) Growth 

in 1960—70 was exceptionally rapid in Florida, Georgia, 

and Maryland where employment of librarians in 1970 

was more than double the 1960 level.

Staffing patterns

Library staffing patterns vary considerably, and depend chiefly on the size and type of the institution. In 

many libraries, 80 percent or more of the staff are either 

librarians or library attendants-assistants—a broad category of nonprofessional occupations including assistants, 

technicians, technical assistants, aides, clerks, pages, and 

others in library-related occupations. Compared to the 

number in library occupations, relatively few persons are 

employed in libraries in nonlibrary occupations. The 

proportion ranges from zero in very small libraries—

where the parent organization handles maintenance 

duties, for example—to 20 percent or more in large 

libraries. Examples of nonlibrary occupations are maintenance staff, including janitors, cleaners, building engineers, groundskeepers, and guards; clerical staff, including secretaries, typists, and clerks; and specialists in 

personnel and employee relations, budget and finance, 

computer science, ami public relations.

Over the past decade, manpower utilization has 

emerged as a central concern of the library profession. 

Various projects launched in the 1960’s—among them 

the School Library Manpower Project, Jobs in Instructional Media Survey, Health Sciences Library Manpower 

Study, and Illinois Task Analysis Study—have focused 

on task analysis and job redesign as a means of 

promoting more efficient use of library personnel. Task 

analysis as a research tool has been applied in different 

ways. In the Health Sciences Library Manpower Study, a 

job-task index was constructed to measure the extent to 

which individuals were engaged in a predefined range of 

professional or nonprofessional activities.17 The School 

Library Manpower Project and the Illinois Task Analysis 

Study covered library work in greater depth but from 

different bases. The former was based on a predeter17Lesliebeth Rothenberg and others, “A Job-Task Index for

Evaluating Professional Personnel Utilization in Libraries,”

Library Quarterly, October 1971, pp. 320-38.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
(Percent d istrib u tio n )

State Librarians Library attendants

and assistants State Librarians Library attendants

and assistants

Total 100.0

Northeast:

New England:

M aine.....................

New Hampshire . .

V e rm o n t..............

Massachusetts .. .

Rhode Island

Connecticut..........

Middle Atlantic:

New York ............

New Jersey ..........

Pennsylvania

North Central:

East North Central:

Ohio .....................

Indiana .................

Illin o is ...................

M ichigan..............

Wisconsin..............

West North Central:

Minnesota ............

I owa .....................

Missouri.................

North Dakota . . .

South Dakota .. .

Nebraska..............

Kansas...................

0.5

.4

.4

3.7

.4

1.6

9.9

3.5

5.5

5.0

2.3

5.6

3.8

2.2

2.0

1.7

2.0

.3

.4

.7

1.4

South:

South Atlantic:

Delaware

Maryland

.3

2.6

100.0

0.4

.4

.3

4.6

.6

2.0

10.4

3.1

4.6

5.0

2.5

4.8

4.3

2.6

2.3

1.6

2.4

.3

.4

.7

1.3

.3

2.3

District of Columbia

V irgin ia................... ..

West V irg in ia..........

North Carolina ....

South Carolina ....

Georgia

Florida......................

East South Central:

Kentucky.................

Tennessee ..............

Alabama .................

Mississippi..............

West South Central:

Arkansas.................

Louisiana.................

Oklahoma ..............

Texas........................

1.2

2.8

.5

2.6

1.3

2.2

2.7

1.3

1.7

1.3

.9

.8

1.5

1.1

4.9

West:

Mountain:

Montana . .

Idaho ..........

Wyoming . .

Colorado . .

New Mexico

Arizona . . .

Utah ..........

Nevada

Pacific:

Washington

Oregon

California . .

Alaska

Hawaii

.5

.4

.2

1.2

.6

.8

.8

.2

2.0

1.1

8.6

.1

.5

1.0

2.4

.4

2.1

.7

1.6

2.5

1.2

1.3

1.1

.7

.6

1.3

1.0

3.9

.4

.3

.2

1.3

.5

.8

.5

.1

2.2

1.5

12.6

.1

.5

S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau of the Census, Census o f Population: 1 97 0 , Characteristics of the Population, V o l. 1, Pts. 1-50.

mined list of library tasks and reported what types of 

personnel in school libraries performed these tasks.18 

The Illinois study, on the other hand, based its analysis 

on tasks observed, defined, and rated by 15 variables in 

actual library situations.19 This approach permitted the 

Illinois researchers to rate tasks by the qualifications 

needed to perform them. These major studies, and 

numerous other efforts on a smaller scale, have produced 

an impressive body of literature on job functions and 

educational requirements for library personnel.

Nearly all the work done in this area calls for a clearer 

distinction, in practice as well as in theory, between 

professional and nonprofessional duties. To this end,

18 “School Library Personnel Task Analysis Survey,”

American Libraries, February 1970, pp. 176-77.

1 9 Social and Educational Research and Development, Inc.,/4

Task Analysis of Library Jobs in the State o f Illinois, Silver

Spring, Md.,SERD, 1970.

various suggestions have been put forth for restructuring 

jobs and reorganizing staffing patterns. Strong support is 

evident for the movement to restructure library jobs— 

separating out the clerical and routine components of 

professional jobs, and assigning the simpler tasks to 

paraprofessionals and nonprofessionals. Widespread interest in job redesign has been heightened by the advent 

of new procedures and technologies for handling the 

essentially clerical tasks which comprise a large portion 

of any library’s daily operation. Of particular importance are recent innovations in cataloging procedure. 

The greatly increased availability of prepared cataloging 

copy, together with the application of computer technology to data processing procedures, has had a profound impact on ordinary library operations by reducing 

the number of professional decisions required and 

eliminating certain clerical procedures. This had made 

possible the simplification and rationalization of professional and nonprofessional tasks in the catalog departments of libraries throughout the country.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Library technical assistants. Most authorities have 

come to favor an additional level of library staffing, just 

below the professional level. The new paraprofessional 

occupation which has emerged in response to this need 

generally is designated “library technical assistant” or 

“library technician.”20 The library technical assistant 

occupies a position somewhere between the professional 

librarian and the library clerk. Estimates of the number 

of library technical assistants employed in the United 

States were not developed for this bulletin. Instead, they 

are included with all other nonprofessional library 

workers in the estimate of 120,000 library attendants 

and assistants employed in 1970. Of this total, library 

technical assistants probably comprise no more than 20 

percent. Relatively few library technical assistants are 

believed to have any formal training in library technology. (More than 100 formal programs in library technology are offered in community colleges throughout the 

country. These programs are discussed briefly in the 

section on supply.)

The question of the role and training of the library 

technical assistant has received attention from various 

quarters, and a number of definitions and criteria for 

educational programs have emerged. Since 1966, the 

U.S. Civil Service Commission, for example, has published job descriptions for personnel in the Library 

Technician series, GS-1411. These define positions 

classed as Library Technician, and specify the education 

and experience needed. In 1967, the Council on Library 

Technology (COLT) was established to offer a means of 

communication to persons and institutions involved in 

training of library technical assistants. COLT has sponsored regional workshops and annual conferences and 

has actively encouraged research on library technical 

assistant programs and graduates.

The American Library Association (ALA) has 

issued several policy statements. The official ALA 

position on appropriate educational programs for library 

technical assistants was adopted in 1969 and revised in 

1971.21 It outlines requirements for faculty, facilities, 

curricula, and student selection and placement. An ALA 

policy statement on library education and manpower 

was adopted in 1970.22 This document recommends 

levels of training and education appropriate for the

20Although a few programs for training library technical

assistants have been in existence since the late 1940’s, the

paraprofessional level of library worker did not attract serious

attention from the profession until the mid-1960’s, when

concern about the shortage of qualified librarians created strong

interest in optimal use of library personnel at all levels.

2 1 Criteria for Programs to Prepare Library Media Technical

Assistants (Chicago, American Library Association, 1971).

2 2 “Library Education and Manpower,” American Libraries,

April 1970, pp. 34144.

following categories of library personnel: Senior Librarian (Senior Specialist), Librarian (Specialist), Library 

Associate (Associate Specialist), Library Technical Assistant (Technical Assistant), and Clerk. The Medical 

Library Association issued a statement on the training of 

medical library technicians in 1967 and adopted standards for medical library technicians in 1970.23 The 

latter are generally compatible with the ALA recommendations for educational programs to prepare library/ 

media technical assistants, although they call for medical 

specialization as part of a curriculum. The Special 

Libraries Association, while taking no official action, has 

been active in the discussion of paraprofessionals at its 

conferences, and has published articles on the subject in 

its journal. In these various ways, “... the profession has 

been moving toward asserting responsibility for the 

definition and supervision of the training and education 

for the library technical assistant.”24

The task analysis projects described earlier have 

identified a number of duties characteristically performed by library technical assistants. In practice, 

however, there appears to be great variation in task 

assignments from library to library. Two studies cited by 

Chisholm and Anderson25 attest to the wide range of 

tasks performed by technical assistants.

A special effort was made in this survey to obtain a 

clearer understanding of the extent to which library 

technical assistants are employed; of the ways in which 

they are used; and of the type of education and training 

employers consider most useful for them. This effort 

was not entirely successful. The difficulties encountered 

by BLS interviewers result chiefly from the fact that the 

occupation is an emerging one. Despite various efforts 

by the library associations to clarify the role of the 

library technical assistant, this relatively new occupation 

is not entirely understood, nor is it accepted by the 

profession at large. Although the library technical 

assistant currently is accepted as a meaningful staff level 

in most large libraries, this is not the case everywhere. 

Many librarians in small libraries are acquainted with

23“MLA Official Policy Statement on the Training of

Medical Library Technicians,” Bulletin o f the Medical Library

Association, October 1967, p. 510 and Medical Library Association, Standards for Medical Library Technicians (Chicago, MLA,

1970).

24Elin Christianson, Paraprofessional and Nonprofessional

Staff in Special Libraries (New York, Special Libraries Association, 1973).

2 5 Studies by Charlotte Mugnier and John E. James, cited in

Margaret E. Chisholm and Charles R. Anderson, Education, Job

Roles, and Upward Mobility: An Investigation o f Opportunities

at the Pre- and Paraprofessional Level in Government Libraries in

the Washington, D.C. Area (College Park, Md., University of

Maryland, 1973).

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
library technical assistants only through the professional 

literature; they have had no experience at all with them 

on a practical level. The absence of a standard, commonly accepted terminology to describe library employees at the paraprofessional level contrasts sharply 

with the widespread understanding of the distinction 

between a professional librarian and a nonprofessional 

library staff member. An SLA publication puts it this 

way:

. . . On a day-to-day basis, the bisection of personnel 

into professional/nonprofessional categories is readily 

understood and practiced in the library community. 

The librarian, considering an individual or staff, can 

informally place workers into one or the other 

category. He uses a combination of knowledge of the 

individual’s education, background, experience, and 

responsibilities to make a judgment.2 6

The survey responses on library technical assistants in 

school libraries and special libraries are not presented in 

this report. There were fewer problems with survey 

responses from the public and academic libraries. These 

libraries were, for the most part, much larger than the 

school libraries and special libraries surveyed and accordingly had more complex staffing patterns—often encompassing librarians, specialists, library technical assistants, 

clerks, and pages. Library technical assistants comprised 

about 30 percent of the full-time equivalent staff in the 

academic libraries surveyed. In the technical services area 

in particular, library technical assistants have assumed 

considerable responsibility for routine duties formerly 

performed by academic librarians. In the public libraries 

surveyed, library technical assistants made up 15 percent 

of the FTE staff. In addition to relieving public 

librarians of routine tasks in acquisitions and cataloging, 

library technical assistants in some public library systems 

have been assigned to supervise branch libraries. In some 

school systems a parallel development reportedly is 

taking place, as library technical assistants—rather than 

librarians— are put in charge of elementary school 

libraries.

Changing job functions. Survey respondents were asked 

to discuss changes which had taken place over the 

preceding 5 years in the job roles of librarians, technicians, and clerks. The consensus regarding librarians was 

that their tasks had become more specialized and that 

they were devoting more time than ever before to 

“professional” tasks, notably program planning and 

administration. There was general agreement that technicians had assumed greater responsibility for routine 

library tasks, especially in the area of cataloging. There

2 6Christianson, op. cit., p. 2.

was a corresponding increase in the level of responsibility for clerks.

The trend toward greater differentiation between 

professional and nonprofessional tasks is apparent in 

school libraries. A number of them mentioned (1) 

greater specialization and more effective differentiation 

between the professional and clerical levels, with a 

resultant shift downward of responsibility for routine 

tasks; (2) greatly increased importance of audiovisualmedia materials and services, with a consequent increase 

in media—related duties for professionals and nonprofessionals alike; and (3) closer contact by the library staff 

with students and teachers. Significant changes in 

curriculum design and emphasis on individualized instruction have led to a shift away from the traditional 

classroom concept, toward heavier library use. School 

librarians are much more directly involved than they 

used to be in the teaching and learning process. The shift 

of routine and clerical tasks from librarians to technical 

assistants and clerks was associated primarily with 

advances in cataloging, notably the increased use of 

prepared cataloging copy. In the relatively few schools 

employing technical assistants as well as clerks, certain 

supervisory responsibilities have been shifted downward 

as well; technical assistants frequently supervise clerks 

and student assistants.

Public librarians generally agree that the gradual 

elimination of nonprofessional duties from professionals’ 

jobs is the most noteworthy change of the past 5 years 

or so. Librarians reportedly spend more time on planning and administration and less on routine operations. 

Many of the clerical tasks formerly performed by 

librarians now are entrusted to library technical assistants and clerks. Among other changes in public librarians’ duties are: ( 1) more audio-visual/media work, (2) 

more community outreach work, and (3) more professional specialization. Several public libraries stressed 

recent efficiency gains on the part of the technical 

services staff due to the introduction of new systems for 

selecting, acquiring, and processing library materials. The 

simplification of cataloging procedures through the 

increased use of prepared cataloging copy was noted less 

frequently by public librarians than it was by academic 

librarians.

Many of the academic libraries surveyed reported that 

librarians were spending less time than before on duties 

of a routine or clerical nature. This is chiefly due to the 

reorganization and simplification of acquisitions and 

cataloging procedures, which has made it possible for 

technical assistants and clerks to handle steps in the 

procedure which previously required a professional 

librarian’s attention. More effective differentiation between professional and nonprofessional duties in acaDigitized for FRASER 

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
demic libraries also has come about because of staff 

expansion. Hiring of additional staff has permitted 

greater specialization in work assignments, thus usually 

freeing professional librarians from certain “nonprofessional” duties. A number of academic libraries indicated 

increased specialization at the professional level as well. 

Rapid growth in the scope and size of academic library 

collections, together with the addition of professional 

staff, has resulted in the creation of new positions in 

some libraries. Among these are rare books librarian, 

pen heals librarian, acquisitions librarian, government 

documents librarians, and audiovisual librarian.

Some evidence of a downward shift in responsibility 

for routine and clerical library operations appears in 

special libraries. In one library, library technical assistants have relieved librarians of routine cataloging duties; 

in another, delegation of routine duties to clerks has 

enabled the head librarian to devote more time to 

policymaking, planning, and administration.

Volunteers and student assistants. The use of volunteers 

and student assistants varies by type of library. Volunteers worked in nearly 90 percent of the school libraries 

surveyed, and in 60 percent of the public libraries. They 

do not seem to be used to any great extent in academic 

or special libraries; only about 15 percent of these 

libraries reported any volunteers.

The amount of labor contributed by library volunteers is modest in comparison with the hours worked 

by regular staff members. In most cases, library administrators appear to make a conscious effort to ensure that 

volunteers are not used as a low-cost substitute for 

regular staff. This is not always the case, however. A few 

libraries reported that recent budget cuts had forced 

staff cuts and, as a result, continuation of certain library 

services depended entirely on the availability of volunteers.

Only school libraries and academic libraries were 

queried about the use of paid student assistants. About 

20 percent of the school libraries used paid students; few 

of these used volunteers. All academic libraries in the 

survey employ students in campus libraries, a practice 

which is regarded as a form of student aid. Federally 

funded Work-Study Programs2 7 pay the salaries of many 

students working part-time in college and university 

libraries, a well-established and generally successful 

arrangement which reportedly benefits students and 

libraries alike.

27Federal funds are made available to colleges and universities to promote the part-time employment of postsecondary

students in financial need under Title IV-C of the Higher

Education Act of 1965, as amended.

The data show that school libraries rely most heavily 

on volunteers. Nine out of 10 schools in the survey 

reported some use of volunteers, and the amount of time 

contributed by volunteers in school libraries was considerably greater (relative to manhours worked by 

regular library staff) than in other types of libraries. In 

the 30 public school systems and nonpublic schools 

surveyed, the number of library volunteers in 1972 

ranged from zero27 8 * to more than 150, with most 

schools reporting 10-50 volunteer parents, students, or 

others. School library volunteers mostly assist with 

routine tasks: Charging books in and out, shelving, 

processing, mending, preparing library materials for the 

bindery, typing, filing, and delivering library materials to 

teachers. The duties performed by volunteers have not 

changed appreciably over the past 5 years, according to 

most respondents. School libraries use as many or more 

volunteers today than they did 5 years ago; only 8 

percent reported using fewer volunteers in 1972 than in 

1967.

Of the 35 public libraries surveyed, 20 used volunteers in 1972 and 15 did not. Large public libraries show 

a greater propensity to use volunteers than smaller ones; 

three out of four of the public libraries in the survey 

which employed 100 staff members or more in 1972 

used the services of volunteers. Among public libraries 

employing a total of 20 persons or less, however, only 

1 in 4 used volunteers.2 9 Compared to the number of 

persons they employ, public libraries—both large and 

small—use very few volunteers. The number of volunteers in public libraries surveyed ranged from 1 to 50;30 

total man-hours contributed per week were well under 

100 (the equivalent of 2.5 staff members working 40 

hours per week) in all but one public library in the 

survey. Compared to the total number of people 

employed in these libraries, the amount of volunteer 

assistance was scarcely significant in terms of additional 

manpower. The chief value of volunteer assistance in 

public libraries appears to be noneconomic. There is, on

2 8Of the 3 school systems in the survey which reported zero

volunteers in 1972, one is a big-city system employing more than

400 full-time and part-time library personnel, plus paid student

assistants. Neither of the other systems-both much smaller-uses

paid student assistants.

29The distribution of all 35 public libraries surveyed was as

follows:

Staff size Volunteers No volunteers

20 or fewer .............. 3 8

21-99 persons........... 5 3

100 or m ore.............. 12 4

30Three libraries, each with a total full-time and part-time

staff exceeding 100 persons in 1972, were unable to specify how

many volunteers they had used during the year. There was no

reason to believe that they differed significantly from other

libraries of comparable size in the number of volunteers used.

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the one hand, a public relations benefit for the library 

from direct community involvement in the library’s 

activities. On the other hand, volunteers who succeed in 

demonstrating a spirit of good will may greatly improve 

the quality of ordinary library services. This is especially 

valuable in the area of community outreach—including 

services to the homebound—which is a major activity for 

public library volunteers. Although volunteers perform a 

variety of routine tasks in public libraries, they appear to 

be employed most heavily in types of work which do 

not overlap the duties of paid staff members, notably 

outreach and extension services. Volunteers characteristically deliver books to shut-ins, provide materials to 

hospital patients, and assist with story hours, and 

summer reading clubs. As in the case of school libraries, 

there has been little appreciable change in the duties of 

public library volunteers in the past 5 years. And 

compared with 1967, nearly all public libraries today use 

as many or more volunteers.

Few of the academic and special libraries surveyed by 

BLS use volunteers. The desire of virtually all colleges 

and universities to provide campus employment opportunities for their students militates against their use. 

Relatively few special libraries would be likely to 

consider it appropriate to solicit or accept volunteer 

services. Hospital libraries are a significant exception. 

They rely heavily on volunteer help. The 1969 health 

sciences library survey found that almost half of all 

hospital library personnel were volunteers.

Career ladders. Opportunities for upward mobility within the library profession are fairly limited. There are 

several reasons for this. Most important is the customary 

educational requirement for entry at the professional 

level which prevents nonprofessionals from progressing 

to professional positions on the basis of experience 

alone. A college or graduate degree—including course 

work in librarianship—almost always is essential to 

appointment at a professional level. Nonprofessionals 

and paraprofessionals thus are blocked, as a rule, from 

entering the professional grades. Despite widespread 

interest in generating career opportunities for nonprofessionals, very few libraries appear to have taken steps to 

facilitate the movement of nonprofessionals into professional positions because of the current job market for 

professionals.

Another important reason for the relatively limited 

upward mobility characteristic of librarianship is staff 

size. In many libraries, the number of staff members is 

so small that there is little opportunity for advancement 

based on skill specialization, added responsibility, or 

supervisory duties. This is equally a problem for professionals and for nonprofessionals. In a fairly typical

library staffed by two librarians and three clerks,31 for 

example, there is not much scope for a hierarchy of jobs. 

Many libraries—school libraries and special libraries in 

particular—are about this size. They are not in a position 

to offer their employees much prospect of advancement.

In general, differentiated staffing patterns which 

include a hierarchy of jobs and provide opportunities for 

promotion are encountered more often in public and 

academic libraries, i.e., in the larger libraries, than in 

other kinds of libraries.

Career ladders of varying degrees of complexity were 

described to BLS interviewers during the Library Manpower Survey. All of the large public libraries in the 

survey, and many medium-sized ones as well, have 

personnel structures which provide at least two separate 

career ladders; one for librarians and one for clerks. A 

number of public libraries have a third ladder as well, for 

paraprofessional personnel. Job titles for the paraprofessional level vary considerably; “library assistant” was 

encountered more frequently than “library technician” 

or “library technical assistant.” Following are two 

examples of public library career ladders. The more 

complex pattern is used in a large library. It establishes 

three separate career ladders for library personnel, and 

has a “lattice” feature which enables clerks to switch 

into the library technician series after 2 years’ experience.

Librarians

Librarian I (MLS32 from A LA-accredited school)

Supervising Librarian I (MLS plus 1 year’s experience)

Supervising Librarian II (MLS plus 3 years’ experience)

Supervising Librarian III (MLS plus 4 years’ experience)

Supervising Librarian IV (MLS plus 5 years’ experience)

Chief Supervisor (MLS plus 6 years’ experience)

Library technicians

Library Technician I (1 year’s college plus 6 hours’

Library Science plus 3 years’ experience)

Library Technician II (2 years’ college plus 12 hours’

Library Science plus 4 years’ experience)

Library Technician III (2 years’ college plus 24

hours’ Library Science plus 5 years’ experience)

31 Survey results for the smallest libraries in the BLS sample,

that is, for libraries employing one to four full-time and

part-time librarians, show marked differences by type o f library

as to the number of nonprofessionals employed. These data

indicate that small public and academic libraries employ more

nonprofessionals than equally small school libraries. A public or

academic library with two librarians on the staff probably

employs three to five clerks, whereas a school library staffed by

two librarians probably only one to two clerks. Data on special

libraries were not rehable enough for publication.

3 2 Or equivalent, such as MSLS.

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Library clerks

Clerk I (high school graduate)

Clerk II (high school plus 6 m onths’ experience)

Clerk III (high school plus 1 year’s experience)

Clerk IV (high school plus 2 years’ experience)

Library Technician I (see above) or Clerk V (2 years’

college plus typing plus 4 years’ experience)

Chief Clerk (2 years’ college plus supervisory course

plus 6 years’ experience)

The less complex example is typical of the formal job 

structure in many medium-sized public libraries:

Librarians

Librarian (MLS)

Senior Librarian (MLS plus 18-24 m onths’ experience)

Principal Librarian (MLS plus experience)

Supervisory Librarian (MLS plus experience)

Coordinating Librarian (MLS plus experience)

Assistant Chief Librarian (MLS plus experience plus

administrative ability plus formal training)

Clerks

Clerk (high school graduate)

Senior clerk (high school plus 18 m onths’ experience)

Supervisory Clerk (high school plus experience plus

formal training)

A separate career ladder for paraprofessionals is 

found, almost exclusively, in large public libraries, 

university libraries, and Federal libraries. The personnel 

structure in most other libraries provides a staff distinction only between librarians and clerks— “professionals” 

and “nonprofessionals.” Moreover, when the “library 

assistant” level does exist, as in many large public 

libraries, a bachelor’s degree almost always is required at 

the entry level. A graduate of a community college 

library technology program would not satisfy the formal 

requirements for “library assistants” in one of these 

libraries.

Few of the other libraries surveyed had personnel 

structures as formal and complex as those described by 

the large and medium-sized public libraries. However, a 

few large university libraries had comparable systems, 

with librarian, library assistant, and clerk classifications 

each encompassing three or four grades. None of the 

school libraries surveyed described a formal career 

structure for their professional or non professional staff 

members.

Demographic characteristics

Sex. An estimated 97,000 women worked as librarians in 

1970. (See table 5.) They constituted 84 percent of the

total number employed.33 The proportion of women 

librarians varies by type of library, however, ranging 

from 66 percent in academic libraries to 93 percent in 

school libraries.

Among library attendants and assistants, the proportion of women is slightly lower—an estimated 94,500 

women worked as library attendants and assistants in 

1970, nearly 79 percent of the total. There are striking 

similarities in the distribution by sex of library personnel 

in different types of libraries. School libraries, for 

example, employ a very high proportion of women—well 

over nine-tenths in both library occupations—whereas 

the proportion of women employed in academic libraries 

is only about two-thirds.

Men and women appear to pursue different specialties 

within librarianship. In 1970, about 60 percent of all 

men librarians, but only 26 percent of all women 

librarians, were employed in academic or special 

libraries. For women, school libraries rank first. About 

50 percent of all women librarians work in school 

libraries, compared to only 20 percent of the men. 

Among library attendants and assistants, too, men and 

women exhibit different employment patterns. Men 

library attendants and assistants are concentrated most 

heavily in academic libraries, whereas women library 

attendants and assistants are distributed somewhat more 

evenly among all kinds of libraries. (See chart 2.)

Men have been attracted to librarianship in growing 

numbers in recent years. To some extent, this reflects 

the profession’s evident concern with its image, and the 

success of efforts to alter what it regards as an 

unfavorable stereotype. Consequently, men are actively 

recruited for professional positions in libraries. The 

increase in the number of men working in libraries also 

may reflect a heightened tendency for new college 

graduates with backgrounds in management, computer 

science, audiovisual technology, law, and engineering to 

consider careers in librarianship. According to the 

limited data available, the number of men librarians 

increased more than 80 percent between 1960 and 1970. 

However, employment of women librarians rose over 60 

percent in the same period, and because of their large 

number, the proportion of men in the field shows little 

change.

Only a few professional occupations—notably nursing 

and teaching—have as high a proportion of women as 

librarianship. About 40 percent of all professional, 

technical, and kindred workers in 1970 were women, 

However, 84 percent of all librarians were women, as

3 3 For the method used to derive estimates of the demographic characteristics of librarians and library attendants and

assistants, see appendix A.

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Chart 2

Employment of librarians and library attendants and assistants

by sex and type of library, 1970

Male librarians Male library attendants and assistants

Total: 18,000 Total: 25,500

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Type of library

Librarians Library attendants and assistants

Total Men Women Total Men Women

All libraries .................................... 115,000 18,000 97,000 120,000 25,500 94,500

School................................................................ 52,000 3,600 48,400 19,000 700 18,300

P u b lic ................................................................ 26,500 3,700 22,800 45,000 8,300 36,700

Academic ......................................................... 19,500 6,600 12,900 40,000 12,500 27,500

Special ...............................* ............................ 17,000 4,100 12,900 16,000 4,000 12,000

All libraries .................................... 100 16 84 100 21 79

School................................................................ 100 7 93 100 4 96

P u b lic ................................................................ 100 14 86 100 18 82

Academic ......................................................... 100 34 66 100 31 69

Special .............................................................. 100 24 76 100 25 75

were 95 percent of registered nurses, dietitians, and 

therapists and 84 percent of elementary schoolteachers. 

The proportion of women in most other professional 

occupations was much lower, as for example, accountants—19 percent, engineers—less than 2 percent, physicians, dentists and related practitioners—8 percent, and 

writers, artists, and entertainers—30 percent.

Age. Women librarians are older than men, on average. 

According to census data on employed librarians, 48 

percent of the women but only 26 percent of the men 

were age 45 years or over in 1970. (See chart 3.) Data 

for 1960, while not strictly comparable, suggest that a 

larger proportion of librarians are in the younger age 

groups today than was the case a decade ago. This is in 

line with BLS survey results. Many of the librarians 

surveyed in 1973 reported that the average age of 

professional staff members had declined since 1967, 

chiefly because of retirements and expansion. The 

vacancies and new positions were filled, by and large, by 

recent M.L.S. or college graduates, most of whom were 

in their twenties or thirties.

Despite this trend, nearly 44 percent of all librarians 

were age 45 years or over in 1970, a significantly higher 

percent of older workers than in any other professional 

occupation, except for physicians and dentists as shown 

below:

Occupation Percent 45 years or over

Librarians....................................................................... 44

Professional, technical, and

kindred workers...........................................34

Accountants.......................................................40

Computer specialists.........................................10

Engineers ............................................................36

Physicians, dentists, and

related practitioners....................................48

Registered nurses, dietitians,

and therapists................................................38

Social and recreation w orkers........................32

Teachers, except college and

university.......................................................32

Writers, artists, and

entertainers .................................................. 32

The average age of library attendants and assistants is 

considerably lower than that of librarians. Fully 50 

percent of the attendants and assistants employed in 

1970 were age 24 years or less. As in the case of 

librarians, however, the men tend to be younger than the 

women. According to the 1970 census, the median age 

of men library attendants and assistants was 21.9 years, 

compared to 29.8 years for women.

Race. The distribution of librarians by race is much like 

that of other professional occupations: they are predominantly white. In 1970, the percent of librarians 

who were white compared with other occupations as 

follows:

Occupation Percent white

Librarians....................................................................... 92

Professional, technical,

and kindred workers ................................. 93

Computer specialists.........................................95

Engineers ............................................................97

Registered nurses, dietitians,

and therapists................................................90

Teachers, except college

and university ............................................. 90

The number of black librarians doubled between 1960 

and 1970, rising to 8,000 from roughly 4,000. Overall, 

the proportion of nonwhites employed as librarians rose 

during the sixties, from about 6 percent in 1960 to 8 

percent in 1970. Employment of librarians of Spanish 

origin was somewhat less than 2,000 in 1970, according 

to 1970 census data.34

3 4For additional detail on the distribution by race and sex of

employed librarians, see p. 12 of Census o f Population: 1970,

Occupational Characteristics, Subject Reports, Final Report

PC(2)-7A (Bureau of the Census, 1973). Employment data based

on a 5-percent sample of the population are presented for

whites, Negroes, American Indians, Japanese, Chinese, Filipinos,

and persons of Spanish origin. It should be noted that persons of

Spanish origin are double-counted. Since they may be of any

race, they are counted once in the appropriate racial category

and a second time in the “Spanish origin” category. Data for

library attendants and assistants appear on p. 17 of the same

publication.

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Library attendants and assistants, too, are predominantly white. In 1970, more than 90 percent of the 

attendants and assistants were white, about 8 percent 

were black, and only 2 percent were members of other 

races. Library attendants and assistants of Spanish origin 

numbered more than 2,700 in 1970.

Educational attainment

Probably no more than 40-50 percent of all librarians 

employed in the United States have a master’s degree in 

librarianship, the academic credential which the profession considers a “basic requirement” for a practicing 

librarian.35

There are several reasons for this, the chief one being 

the relatively large number of school librarians. Nearly 

half the librarians in the United States work in school 

libraries, where, as a rule, the most important credential 

is a State teaching certificate—not a master’s degree in 

librarianship.36

In nearly all States, the minimum educational requirement for a school librarian is a bachelor’s degree, 

including a designated number of undergraduate hours in 

education and some additional hours in library science. 

State requirements vary as to the number of credit hours 

of library science required for certification as a school 

librarian, but 18 hours is fairly standard. Only a few 

States—notably Hawaii, Kentucky, and New Jerseydemand a master’s degree in librarianship in addition to 

the bachelor’s degree with a major or minor in education. However, some local boards of education are more 

stringent in their requirements than State certification 

authorities.

At present, because of the tight job market, many 

schools can and do insist that newly hired librarians have 

the master’s degree in librarianship, even though this is 

not a formal State requirement.37 Because of their 

special focus on children and learning, school librarians 

tend to have more in common, professionally, with

3 5The American Library Association’s official position on

the level of training and education appropriate for various library

occupations is set forth in Library Education and Manpower, A

Statement o f Policy Adopted by the Council o f the American

Library Association (Chicago, ALA, 1970).

36All of the 48,000 librarians or more employed in public

schools, and some of the estimated 4,000 librarians in nonpublic

schools, are required by State law or regulation to hold

appropriate teaching certificates. Cf, A Manual on Certification

Requirements for School Personnel in the United States (Washington, National Education Association, 1970), p. 28.

3 7This is not always the case, however. In school systems

where personnel with a master’s degree automatically command

a higher starting salary than those with a bachelor’s degree, job

applicants with a bachelor’s degree generally are preferred.

teachers than they have with their colleagues in public, 

academic, or special libraries. Compared to other librarians, school librarians are less likely to have earned the 

master’s degree in library science and more likely to have 

a background in education, including some audiovisual 

or media skills.

Another reason for the relatively low percent of 

librarians with graduate degrees lies in a change, about 

25 years ago, in the level of training required for 

professional librarians. Until the late 1940’s, the 5-year 

bachelor’s degree in library science (no longer awarded 

by U.S. library schools) was the normal background for 

a professional librarian. The master’s program in library 

science—now the standard first professional degree38 

—was officially endorsed by ALA in 1951, when new 

standards for accreditation of library school programs 

were adopted. (The 1951 standards for accreditation 

were revised in 1971.) Thus, prior to the early 1950’s, 

virtually all library school graduates were recipients of 

the so-called “fifth year” bachelor’s degree in library 

science. A diminishing but still discernible number of 

today’s practicing librarians completed their professional 

training and began work in the 1930’s or 1940’s.

The predominance of older librarians contributes in 

still another way to the relatively low percent of 

librarians who have the master’s degree. Professional 

standards have risen over the years, and are continuing 

to rise, so that with the important exception of school 

libraries, fewer and fewer libraries are hiring beginning 

librarians who are not library school graduates. Insistence on formal professional training is a fairly recent 

development, however, and some older librarians are still 

at work whose qualifications lie in long years of varied 

experience, rather than formal training in library school.

Still another reason for the relatively low percent of 

librarians with the master’s degree is the limited financial 

base of small libraries. Quite a few of the public libraries 

serving communities of 25,000 inhabitants or less 

operate with an extremely low budget, and a total staff 

of 2 or 3 persons. A number of special libraries operate 

under the same constraints. Despite the overall upgrading of professional standards, these libraries generally are 

not in the market for graduate librarians. Their resources 

are simply too limited.

3 8 The master’s degree in librarianship is regarded as the first

professional degree by the American Library Association (ALA).

The ALA does not recognize the bachelor’s degree, even one

with a library science major, as adequate preparation for a

professional librarian. This point of view has produced an official

protest from the American Association of School Librarians

inasmuch as the bachelor’s degree is the standard preparation of

school librarians.

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BLS and other survey data indicate clearly that small 

public libraries differ substantially from larger ones in 

terms of staff credentials. The BLS survey conducted in 

early 1973 provides data on the educational attainment 

of 1,778 librarians in 35 public libraries, including six 

“small” public libraries serving 25,000 persons or less. In 

the small public libraries surveyed by BLS—each with a 

1972 operating budget of less than $45,000—only 1 

librarian in 5 had the master’s degree in librarianship 

compared to 4 out of 5 with the master’s in all public 

libraries surveyed. Furthermore, fully a third of the 

librarians staffing these small public libraries had no 

more than a high school education. Elsewhere—in larger 

public libraries, in school and academic libraries, and in 

most special libraries—the librarian with no college 

education at all has virtually disappeared.

Office of Education survey data indicate that public 

librarians with the master’s degree are concentrated in 

the Nation’s largest libraries. In 1968, the 85 largest 

public libraries39 in the United States employed twothirds of the total number of master’s degree librarians40 in public libraries serving 25,000 persons or more. 

Over 1,000 smaller public libraries employed the remainder. Comparable 1968 data are not available on 

public libraries serving fewer than 25,000 persons.

The BLS survey reveals certain patterns in the 

educational background of librarians working in different types of libraries. School librarians, predictably, 

are much less likely than others to have a master’s degree 

in librarianship. Moreover, almost as many school 

librarians have a graduate degree in another field as have 

the master’s in library science. About 65 percent of the 

school librarians covered by the survey had only a 

bachelor’s degree; the remainder had either the library 

science master’s (20 percent) or another graduate degree 

(15 percent). Very few school librarians reported two 

graduate degrees (library science master’s plus a master’s 

or doctorate in another field).

The picture in academic libraries is quite different. 

According to the survey, 95 percent of academic 

librarians have the master’s degree in librarianship,41

3 9 Largest in terms of library staff size. Each of the 85

libraries employed 100 FTE persons or more, not including

maintenance. Statistics o f Public Libraries Serving Areas with at

Least 25,000 Inhabitants, 1968 (Office of Education, 1970,

OE-15068-68).

40Includes recipients of the “fifth year” bachelor’s degree in

librarianship, no longer awarded by U.S. library schools.

4 includes double degrees. About 78 percent of the

academic librarians surveyed had the master’s degree in librarianship only and another 16 percent had the library science master’s

plus a second graduate degree; roughly 1 percent had a graduate

degree but not in librarianship; and not quite 5 percent had a

bachelor’s degree only or less.

and a sizable and growing number have two graduate 

degrees.

Diversity of professional credentials probably is 

greatest among public libraries and special libraries. In 

some public libraries, all the librarians on the staff hold 

master’s degrees in librarianship, while in others, none 

do. The number of graduate librarians in public libraries 

is rising, however, for in the past several years, most 

public libraries that could afford to do so have given 

preference in hiring to master’s graduates (or, in the case 

of librarian trainees, to persons enrolled in a graduate 

program in library science). Over 80 percent of the 

public librarians covered by the survey had the master’s 

degree in librarianship. Very few had two graduate 

degrees. The percent of librarians with library science 

master’s was higher (about 90 percent) in libraries 

serving 500,000 persons or more, and lower in smaller 

libraries: roughly 60 percent of the librarians in public 

libraries serving 50,000—99,999 persons had the master’s 

degree, and only about 20 percent in libraries serving 

fewer than 25,000 persons.

Survey data on educational attainment of special 

librarians are too limited for meaningful comparisons. 

Nevertheless they illustrate the great variety in types of 

special libraries, and in appropriate staff qualifications. 

In special libraries, subject expertise is exceptionally 

important, and it is not uncommon for the head 

librarian to be a subject expert with strong academic 

credentials—a chemist, historian, or lawyer, for example—with course work but no formal degree in librarianship. In law school, medical school, and other special 

libraries within a university setting, however, the special 

librarian almost invariably has a library science master’s, 

and frequently has two graduate degrees.

Chart 4 depicts the improvement in librarians’ educational qualifications which took place between 1960 and 

1970. According to decennial census data, the proportion of librarians with at least a college education rose 

significantly, from over half in 1960 to nearly two-thirds 

in 1970. The census data show 42 percent of all 

librarians in 1970 having completed 5 years or more of 

college (i.e., library science master’s or other graduate 

work), up from 35 percent 10 years before. This increase 

in the proportion of librarians with graduate training 

reflects the considerable expansion of library education 

programs during the decade of the sixties. Compared to 

the substantial upgrading of librarians’ educational qualifications between 1960 and 1970, the improvement in 

attendants and assistants’ qualifications was much more 

modest. Nonetheless, more than half of all library 

attendants and assistants in 1970 had at least some 

college education, and nearly 20 percent were college 

graduates.

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Chart 4

Years of school completed by librarians and library attendants

and assistants, 1960 and 1970

Librarians

1970

1960

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census.

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The survey provides data on the training of attendants and assistants in different types of libraries. In 

academic libraries, the educational attainment level is 

particularly high; over 70 percent had some college, and 

of these, half had a college degree. High school graduation is the usual entry requirement for attendants and 

assistants in public libraries and school libraries. Over 65 

percent of the attendants and assistants in the public 

libraries surveyed, and 85 percent in the school libraries, 

had a high school education.

A few attendants and assistants working in academic 

libraries had graduate degrees, including master’s degrees 

in library science. This, however, was highly unusual. A 

number of people with the bachelor’s degree in library 

science were employed as library attendants and assistants, mostly in public or school libraries. Very few of 

the attendants and assistants working in libraries surveyed by BLS had completed the 2-year community 

college program for library technician training, or had 

been awarded the associate of arts degree in library 

technology. The total was well under 1 percent in all 

libraries surveyed.

Tables 6 and 7, based on 1970 census data, illustrate 

the difference in educational attainment of men and 

women librarians, and offer a comparison with eight

Table 6. Occupational distribution of the male

experienced civilian labor force by years of school

completed, 1970.

(In percent)

Occupation Total

4 years of

high

school

or less

1 -4

years

college

5 yrs. of

college

ior more

Experienced civilian

labor fo rc e ..................... 100 73 20 7

Professional, technical,

and kindred workers . . 100 23 43 34

Librarians................. 100 14 34 52

Computer

specialists............ 100 26 57 17

Engineers ................. 100 21 56 23

Registered

nurses................... 100 23 40 37

Social

scientists ............ 100 9 38 53

Teachers,

college and

university . . . 100 3 12 85

Teachers,

elementary school 100 4 48 48

Teachers,

secondary school 100 3 40 57

Vocational and

educational

counselors . . . 100 7 23 70

S O U R C E : U .S . Bureau o f th e Census.

other professional occupations. More men than women 

librarians had gone on to complete 5 years or more of 

higher education—52 percent of the men and 39 percent 

of the women. This compares favorably with professional and technical workers as a whole, but among the 

selected occupations shown, social scientists, college and 

university teachers, and counselors all had higher average 

educational attainment levels than librarians. Librarians 

compared very closely with secondary school teachers in 

years of college completed.

The survey sought to explore recent changes in 

educational requirements for library manpower. The 

principal finding is that the profession is undergoing a 

rapid upgrading. Although only about half of all 

librarians have the master’s degree in librarianship, this is 

a far larger percent than a decade ago. Moreover, today’s 

entering librarians are more likely than their predecessors—even those of just a few years ago—to have a 

graduate degree in librarianship. In less than a decade, 

the library science master’s has become the standard 

credentials for jobseekers in virtually all large libraries, 

and in many smaller ones as well.

The master’s degree in librarianship is required for 

employment in 95 percent of the academic libraries and 

nearly 70 percent of the public libraries surveyed by

Table 7. Occupational distribution of the female

experienced civilian labor force by years of school

completed, 1970

(In percent)

Occupation Total

4 years of

high

school

or less

1 -4

years

college

5 years of

college

or more

Experienced civilian

labor fo rc e ..................... 100 76 20 4

Professional, technical,

and kindred workers . . 100 26 54 20

Librarians................. 100 20 41 39

Computer

specialists............ 100 29 62 9

Engineers ................. 100 38 47 15

Registered

nurses................... 100 46 48 6

Social

scientists ............ 100 15 32 53

Teachers,

college and

university . . . 100 7 28 65

Teachers,

elementary school 100 6 68 26

Teachers,

secondary school 100 3 58 39

Vocational and

educational

counselors. .. 100 9 29 62

S O U R C E : U .S . Bureau o f th e Census.

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BLS. Less than 15 percent of the school libraries in the 

survey require the graduate degree in librarianship. In 

practice, some school administrators currently give 

preference in hiring to candidates with the library 

science master’s; others do not.

There has been little change in formal requirements 

for academic librarians in the past 5 years. Then, as now, 

the master’s degree in librarianship was essential. In 

practice, many academic libraries give preference to 

applicants with two master’s degrees, and require these 

for openings above the entry level. The supply of 

graduate librarians with a master’s degree or doctorate in 

a subject field has increased greatly in the past few years, 

according to BLS survey data. In part, this reflects the 

change in the job market for today’s college graduates, 

compared to the situation in the 1960’s. More and more 

graduates, unable to find jobs in their own fields, add 

the library science master’s to their credentials in the 

expectation of increasing their employability. This trend 

has created a supply of job applicants with impressive 

academic credentials.

Public libraries are in the midst of a change; roughly 

1 library in 5 surveyed has upgraded the requirements for beginning librarians since 1967 and now 

requires the library science master’s rather than just a 

bachelor’s degree, as before. Some small public libraries 

require only a high school diploma for beginning 

librarians, the only libraries in the BLS survey to do so. 

Public libraries are actively concerned with upgrading 

staff, however, and it seems likely that by the 1980’s, all

but the smallest public libraries will require newly hired 

librarians to have a college degree.

School libraries, too, have been active with respect to 

upgrading staff, but relatively few have instituted a 

formal library science master’s requirement. Instead, 

quite a few State authorities have approved changes 

requiring a greater number of hours of library science. 

One out of three school libraries surveyed by BLS 

reported that it currently required entering librarians to 

have more credit hours of library science than was the 

case 5 years ago. Some boards of education currently 

give preference to job applicants with a master’s degree 

in librarianship plus appropriate teaching credentials. At 

the same time, there are reports from other school 

systems of preference for candidates with bachelor’s 

degrees (including appropriate teaching credentials and 

course work for librarianship), inasmuch as the salary 

schedule for teachers, librarians, and other instructional 

staff members is related to academic background. In 

these schools, instructional personnel with a master’s 

degree command a higher salary than those with a 

bachelor’s degree, and therefore are less sought after.

Earnings

Of those librarians employed full year in 1969,42 

one-third of the men earned less than $8,000, compared

4 2 Those who worked 50 to 52 weeks in 1969.

Table 8. Earnings distribution of the male experienced civilian labor force who worked 50 to 52 weeks in 1969,

by selected occupation

(In percent)

Occupation Total

To

$3,999

$4,000 to

$7,999

$8,000 to

$11,999

$ 12,000 to

$14,999

$15,000

and above

Experienced civilian labor

force .................................................... 100 11 34 33 10 12

Professional, technical,

and kindred w orkers............................ 100 5 17 32 18 28

Librarians........................................... 100 11 22 36 16 15

Computer specialists........................ 100 3 12 41 24 20

Engineers........................................... 100 2 6 28 27 37

Registered nurses............................ 100 9 44 27 8 12

Social scientists ............................... 100 4 7 25 21 43

Teachers, college and

university .................................... 100 8 10 25 20 37

Teachers, elementary

school ........................................... 100 6 34 42 12 6

Teachers, secondary

scho ol........................................... 100 4 27 45 15 9

Vocational and

educational counselors ............ 100 6 18 37 21 18

S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f the Census.

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(In percent)

Occupation Total To

$3,999

$4,000

to

$7,999

$8,000

to

$11,999

$ 12,000

to

$14,999

$15,000

and

above

Experienced civilian

labor fo rce............................................... 100 37 52 9 1 1

Professional, technical,

and kindred w orkers............................ 100 17 49 27 4 3

Librarians........................................... 100 19 40 34 5 2

Computer specialists........................ 100 5 35 42 13 5

Engineers........................................... 100 5 24 36 17 18

Registered nurses............................. 100 17 53 27 2 1

Social scientists ............................... 100 7 33 34 13 13

Teachers, college

and university............................ 100 18 27 34 11 10

Teachers, elementary

scho ol........................................... 100 13 52 30 4 1

Teachers, secondary

school........................................... 100 12 49 32 6 1

Vocational and

educational counselors ............ 100 13 30 39 12 6

S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f the Census.

to nearly three-fifths of all women librarians. (See tables 

8 and 9.)43 Approximately one-third of all librarians— 

men and women—had earnings ranging from $8,000 to 

$11,999.

The tables allow comparison of librarians’ earnings 

with other occupational groups. For the total experienced civilian labor force,44 about twice the proportion 

of women as men had earnings of less than $8,000. 

While over one-half the men made $8,000 or more, only 

about one woman in 10 did.

As would be expected, among professional and 

technical workers employed full-year, there is a greater 

concentration of workers in the higher earnings categories. Four-fifths of all men professional and technical 

workers earned $8,000 or more; only one woman in

4 3The earnings data presented here are based on information

from the 1970 decennial census and reflect annual earnings and

number of weeks worked in 1969. See tables 11, 16, and 19 in

Census o f Population: 1970, Occupational Characteristics, Subject Reports, Final Report PC (2)-7A (Bureau of the Census,

1973). Apart from the Census, earnings data for the library

profession are available from a variety of sources which vary,

however, in terms of completeness and comparability. Sources of

data include the American Library Association, the Special

Libraries Association, the Council on Library Resources, the

National Education Association, the Public Personnel Association, and the College Placement Council. Results of an annual

survey of starting salaries for graduates of ALA-accredited

institutions are published every June in Library Journal

4 4 The “experienced civilian labor force” is comprised of all

employed and experienced unemployed civilians. Unemployed

persons who have worked at any time in the past are classified as

“experienced unemployed.”

three earned that much. Women librarians, while making 

less than men, do relatively better than women in other 

professional occupations. This contrasts with the situation for men librarians when their earnings are compared 

to those of other men professionals. Forty-one percent 

of the women librarians earned $8,000 or more compared to 34 percent of all women professionals. Only 67 

percent of the men librarians earned $8,000 or more 

compared to 78 percent of all men professionals. 

Similar comparisons can be drawn between librarians 

and persons in other occupations and between men and 

women in the various occupations.

Table 10 presents the actual mean earnings figures of 

men and women full-year workers. Relatively speaking, 

women librarians in terms of their earnings fared much 

better than most women in the labor force, whereas men 

librarians were only slightly better off than men workers 

as a whole. The average earnings in 1969 for women 

librarians working a full year were $7,004. These 

earnings were about the same as those of other professionals, but they were 42 percent higher than the average 

for all women in the experienced civilian labor force. 

The average full-year earnings for men librarians were 

$10,694. Men librarians, however, made only about 

four-fifths of the average of all men professional and 

technical workers. Their average earnings were $2,563 

less than those for all men professional workers and only 

12 percent more than the average for all men in the 

experienced civilian labor force.

The male-female earnings ratios in table 10 show 

that for all professional workers and for the total

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Table 10. Mean full-year earnings in 1969 and male-female earnings ratio of the experienced

civilian labor force and selected occupations, by sex

Occupation

Mean earnings

(full-year) Male-female

earnings ratio

Men Women

Librarians............................................................................ $10,694 $ 7,004 1.53:1

Professional, technical, and kindred workers.............. 13,257 7,009 1.89:1

Experienced civilian labor force .................................... 9,580 4,944 1.94:1

Computer specialists......................................................... 11,690 8,873 1.32:1

Engineers ............................................................................ 14,037 10,877 1.29:1

Registered nurses .............................................................. 9,374 6,585 1.42:1

Social scientists................................................................... 15,373 9,797 1.57:1

Teachers, college and university .................................... 13,880 8,596 1.61:1

Teachers, elementary school........................................... 9,091 7,072 1.29:1

Teachers, secondary school............................................. 9,798 7,417 1.32:1

Vocational and educational counselors........................ 11,121 8,579 1.30:1

SO U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f th e Census.

experienced civilian labor force, the mean earnings of 

men employed full-year approached two times the 

female average. For men librarians, the figure was only 

one and one-half times the female average. The lowest 

male-female full-year earnings ratios among the 

selected occupations are for engineers and for elementary schoolteachers. Some of the difference in the 

earnings figures undoubtedly reflects the fact that more 

women than men are part-time workers. The available 

data, while providing information by number of weeks 

worked, do not permit a comparison of full-time, 

full-year workers.

Overall, the earnings distributions of men and women 

who were employed in 1969 regardless of the number of 

weeks worked are fairly similar to those for full-year 

workers. (See tables 11 and 12.) The most significant 

change in the distributions is the increase in the 

proportion of workers in the lowest earnings category 

and the decrease in the highest category. The proportion 

of workers earning less than $4,000 is greater for both 

men and women in the total experienced civilian labor 

force, in the total professional and technical workers 

category, and in each of the nine selected professional 

occupations.

For all men librarians employed in 1969, almost 

one-third made less than $4,000. Among full-year 

workers, only 11 percent of men librarians made less 

than $4,000. A similar situation prevails for women 

librarians. Of all employed women librarians, 35 percent 

earned less than $4,000 in 1969, compared to 19 

percent of those who worked full-year.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, in the highest 

earnings category, 10 percent of all men librarians had 

earnings of $15,000 or more. In comparison, 15 percent 

employed the full year earned $15,000 or more. For 

women, the proportion of librarians in the highest 

earnings category was 2 percent for full-year workers

and less than 1 percent for all women librarians 

regardless of the number of weeks worked.

Data from the 1970 census show that men are more 

likely to be full-year workers than are women. Seventythree percent of all men in the experienced civilian labor 

force worked 50 to 52 weeks in 1969 compared to 53 

percent of all women. Fifty-four percent of men 

librarians were full-year workers; among women, 43 

percent. When those workers who were employed more 

than three-fourths of the year—that is, 40 weeks or more 

in 1969—are considered, 74 percent of the men librarians are included. For women librarians, 70 percent 

worked three-fourths of the year. This percent is equal 

to that for all women in the experienced civilian labor 

force. For men, however, the 74 percent for librarians is 

well below the 87 percent for the total experienced 

civilian male labor force.

Considering the number of weeks worked in terms of 

other professional occupations, there is a marked similarity in the participation patterns of librarians, teachers, 

and counselors. All these occupations are important in 

schools, and the fact that schools generally operate on a 

9-month basis accounts for the relatively large amount 

of part-year employment in these occupations.

Hiring and recruitment experience

Since 1970, the job market for librarians has been 

tight. For the jobseeker, the current employment situation contrasts unfavorably with that 5 to 10 years ago, 

when librarians were in extremely short supply.

Librarians, as well as school teachers, university 

professors, engineers, scientists, and other professional 

personnel have encountered a tight job market since the 

beginning of the 1970’s. Engineers and scientists, for 

example, have been affected by cutbacks in R&D, 

aerospace, and defense spending; teachers and professors

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(In percent)

Occupation Total To

$3,999

$4,000

to

$7,999

$8,000

to

$11,999

$ 12,000

to

$14,999

$15,000

and

above

Experienced civilian labor

force ............................................................................ 100 21 33 28 8 10

Professional, technical

and kindred w orkers...................................... .. 100 11 19 30 16 24

Librarians.............................................................. 100 34 18 26 12 10

Computer specialists........................................... 100 7 15 38 22 18

Engineers.............................................................. 100 4 8 28 26 34

Registered nurses............................................... 100 20 37 27 8 8

Social scientists .................................................. 100 8 11 23 19 39

Teachers, college and

university ....................................................... 100 18 13 24 17 28

Teachers, elementary

scho ol.............................................................. 100 15 34 37 10 4

Teachers, secondary

school.............................................................. 100 11 27 41 14 7

Vocational and

educational

counselors....................................................... 100 16 16 35 19 14

S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f th e Census.

have been affected primarily by supply-demand factors. 

Practically all of the professions—with the possible 

exception of some health fields—have had to deal with 

the sudden shift from a scarcity of appropriately 

educated personnel to an adequate or oversupply. For 

many, the job market turnaround was intensified by the 

general slowdown in business activity and employment. 

In professional and technical occupations as a group—the 

chief employer of college graduates—employment 

leveled off in 1971. At the same time, there was a very 

sharp increase in the numbers of new college graduates, 

and the record college graduating classes of 1970 and 

1971 encountered serious difficulties in obtaining jobs 

related to their training. The employment situation for 

new graduates appears to have eased somewhat since 

then, but there is little likelihood of a return to the 

“seller’s market” which characterized the 1960 decade.45

The shift from a shortage of librarians to an oversupply has created a sense of urgency within the 

profession. In 1972, at the 91st annual conference of the 

American Library Association, a groundswell of discontent from the membership led the ALA Council to adopt 

several resolutions on the job situation. One resolution, 

on the more effective dissemination of job information,

4 5 The improvement, since 1970, in the employment

situation of graduates of A LA-accredited library schools is

documented in Frarey’s annual survey of library salaries and

placements. See the June 15 issue of Library Journal for Frarey’s

annual article describing the job market encountered by the

preceding year’s library school graduates.

was proposed at the initiative of the Social Responsibilities Round Table Task Force on Jobs, a group of young 

librarians directly affected by the dearth of library jobs. 

The resolution recommended improvements in the conference’s traditional placement service, and called upon 

ALA to work with State library associations to set up a 

placement service for librarians in each State modeled on 

California’s “hotline” system.46 Another resolution 

directed the ALA Office of Library Manpower to collect 

information on unemployment of librarians and to 

report its findings to the profession. The survey results 

were published in March 1973 47 Based on a mail survey 

of 123 graduate library education programs (nonaccredited as well as A LA-accredited programs were 

included in the survey), the ALA Office of Library 

Manpower reported that 15 percent of the June 1972 

library science graduates who sought library jobs had 

failed to find one as of November 1, 1972. Among the 

reasons suggested by the schools for the placement 

difficulties encountered by their graduates were the 

following: limited geographic mobility; poor economic 

conditions locally or nationally; personality problems; 

lack of flexibility concerning specific jobs or salary

levels; and scarcity of vacancies, apart from those in 

affirmative action programs.

46This is a method of publicizing information on current job

openings by means of a recorded telephone message which gives

the caller a weekly updated list of job vacancies. The system in

California is maintained by the California Library Association.

47“Employment Information Report,” American Libraries,

March 1973, pp. 157-58.

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(In percent)

Occupation Total To

$3,999

$4,000

to

$7,999

$8,000

to

$11,999

$ 12,000

to

$14,999

$15,000

and

above

Experienced civilian labor

force ............................................................................ 100 55 36 7 1 1

Professional, technical

and kindred w o rkers................................................ 100 33 40 22 3 2

Librarians.............................................................. 100 35 33 26 5 1

Computer specialists........................................... 100 16 36 34 10 4

Engineers.............................................................. 100 12 25 32 15 16

Registered nurses................................................ 160 33 45 19 2 1

Social scientists .................................................. 100 22 30 27 11 10

Teachers, college and

university ....................................................... 100 38 24 26 7 5

Teachers, elementary

scho ol.............................................................. 100 27 43 26 3 1

Teachers, secondary

school.............................................................. 100 27 41 27 4 1

Vocational and

educational

counselors....................................................... 100 27 22 33 13 5

S O U R C E : U .S . Bureau o f th e Census.

Several questions in the BLS survey focused on the 

current job market. Head librarians and library administrators were asked about recent changes in the library 

manpower supply; about library jobs which are difficult 

to fill, and those which are not; and about the nature of 

current manpower problems, if any.

Respondents are almost unanimous in describing the 

transition from a shortage of library manpower in the 

middle and late 1960’s to an “abundance” or “oversupply,” coupled with fewer available jobs, in 1972. 

Libraries in all parts of the country noted that the 

supply of library school graduates has grown markedly 

since the mid-1960’s. In addition to the record numbers 

of new M.L.S. graduates seeking jobs, growing numbers 

of trained librarians are seeking to re-enter the labor 

force.

The supply of qualified librarians thus has grown a 

great deal in just a few years. At the same time, demand 

has slackened. The abrupt reduction in demand is closely 

related to budget constraints. At the time of the survey, 

budget considerations prevented most libraries from 

doing as much hiring as they had in the past. In many 

instances, the introduction of new programs and services 

was being delayed and existing programs were being cut 

back. A large public library in the Midwest explained, 

“City budget slashes have resulted in cutbacks and 

layoffs of library personnel. If the current freeze were 

lifted, we could hire good people at all levels.” Well over 

half the school libraries surveyed by BLS reported that 

budget limitations affected their staffing levels. Academic libraries, like school libraries, are particularly hard

hit by austerity budgets. In the public libraries, budget 

was cited more frequently than any other manpower 

problem.

By and large, the libraries surveyed had few recruitment difficulties. Most reported an abundance of highly 

qualified applicants. Indeed, many libraries were finding 

it difficult to handle the large volume of unsolicited 

applications and inquiries. Beginning librarians, it was 

found, are easiest to hire and a number of libraries 

indicated that positions at all levels are easy to fill. A 

public library system on the West Coast summarized the 

overall situation as follows: “Generally, there are so few 

vacancies here—and we have such an abundance of 

unsolicited applications—that we have ended library 

school recruiting trips except for the minority search.”

Nonetheless, most large libraries are actively seeking a 

few people with highly specific combinations of training 

and experience. Black and other minority librarians are 

sought, as are public librarians qualified to work with 

the disadvantaged, experienced catalogers, and experienced library administrators. For these positions, supply 

does not appear to meet current demand.

For most other professional library positions which 

pose recruitment problems, the difficulty generally lies 

in unattractive salaries, unsatisfactory working conditions, or undesirable location, rather than scarce supply. 

School libraries, for example, reported some difficulty 

hiring media specialists, instructional materials specialists, audiovisual technicians, librarians trained in exceptional education, and systems analysts with backgrounds 

in education. Some public libraries reported difficulty

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recruiting professional staff at any level because of low 

salaries, undesirable working hours, or remote location. 

Academic libraries encountered some difficulty filling 

positions for supervisory librarian and library administrator, head cataloger, and experienced librarian. Some 

academic libraries also reported difficulty hiring technical assistants and clerks because of low salaries.

Minority issues

Over the past few years, the issue of minorities and 

women in the library profession has become an increasingly sensitive and controversial one. Protestors at the 

Library of Congress and Los Angeles County Public 

Library have denounced hiring and promotion practices 

as discriminatory.48 They have called for significant 

improvements in opportunities for advancement for 

blacks, Chicanos, American Indians, and other ethnic 

and racial minority groups. The situation in these 

libraries is not unlike that in most other occupations: 

Minority group members are disproportionately concentrated in the lowest paying and least interesting jobs. 

In most libraries, more minority members work as 

library clerks than work as librarians, and very few hold 

top administrative jobs. Examples of past discrimination

4 8 In 1971, black employees of the Library of Congress (LC)

complained to the Librarian of Congress, and to the Civil

Service Commission, of alleged discrimination in employment

and advancement opportunity at LC. The controversy also was

referred to ALA, where it has been under consideration since

1971 by the Staff Committee on Mediation, Arbitration, and

Inquiry. LC has since drawn up an Affirmative Action plan

(required under the Equal Opportunity Act of 1972), and issues

semi-annual reports on its progress in improving employment

and advancement opportunities for all members of its staff.

Remedial action reportedly has been undertaken in several key

areas, including preemployment tests, training and performance

agreements, tuition support, and career counseling. Nonetheless,

the controversy continues: criticism by some employees of the

Affirmative Action plan was reported by the press in October

1973.

The Los Angeles County Public Library case also began in

1971, with a formal complaint to the California Fair Employment Practices Commission (FEPC) by a group of black

librarians, who charged the Library with failing to offer equal

employment and promotional opportunities to minority groups.

The Commission completed its inquiry in 1972, and upheld all

charges made by the complainants. In response to FEPC

suggestions for remedial action in some areas, the Library

subsequently intensified its affirmative action efforts. One

outgrowth of these efforts was a cross-complaint of “reverse

discrimination,” brought before the Los Angeles County Civil

Service Commission by another group of librarians. After a

lengthy hearing, the Civil Service Commission upheld the

Library’s practice of utilizing “selective certification” in certain

of its appointments of otherwise qualified personnel. See articles

in the May 15, 1972 and Apr. 1,1973 issues of Library Journal

encountered by blacks in seeking admission to graduate 

library education, and in seeking employment or advancement, are presented in E. J. Josey’s collection of 

reminiscences by noted black librarians.49

Minority employment at the Library of Congress has 

been surveyed semiannually since May 1971. Data show 

that despite recent gains, minority members predominate in low-paying jobs and are few in number in top 

jobs. In November 1973, the date of the most recent LC 

survey,50 total full-time employment was 4,147 persons, 

of whom nearly 43 percent were minority members. 

Seventy-two percent of the employees in the lowest four 

pay grades (GS-1 to GS-4) were minority members as 

were nearly 53 percent in the GS-5 to GS-8 category. In 

grades GS-9 and above, about 19 percent of LC’s 

employees in November 1973 were minority members. 

This is the usual entering grade for beginning M.L.S. 

librarians under Federal civil service regulations. Of 

approximately 300 persons in the Library’s top jobs, 

commanding salaries of $23,000 to $36,000 in 1973, 

only 6 percent were minority members.

Limited data on minority employment also are 

available from a sample survey of public libraries, 

academic libraries, and State library agencies conducted 

in 1969 by ALA’s Library Administration Division, and 

from the 1973 BLS Library Manpower Survey. According to ALA survey data, four out of five responding 

libraries had some minority group members on the staff, 

but minorities were few in number at the professional 

level. Only 8 percent of professional staff members in 

the public libraries surveyed, and 4 percent in the 

academic libraries and State library agencies, were 

minority members. Results of the survey are reported in 

the July-August 1969 issue of ALA Bulletin.

BLS survey results in 1973 showed a higher proportion of minority members in professional positions than 

reported by ALA’s 1969 survey. School libraries revealed a particularly high level of minority representation: More than 26 percent of the professionals and 43 

percent of the nonprofessionals employed in school 

libraries were minority members. In public libraries, 

nearly 13 percent of the professionals and 18 percent of 

the nonprofessionals were minority members. In the 

academic libraries surveyed, minority members comprised 9 percent of both professional and nonprofessional staff members. Academic libraries surveyed by 

BLS thus did not fall into the otherwise consistent 

pattern of a greater concentration of minority members 

in nonprofessional jobs than in professional ones.

49E. J. Josey, ed., The Black Librarian in America

(Metuchen, New Jersey, The Scarecrow Press, 1970).

50“LC Minority Employment,” LC Information Bulletin,

Jan. 18, 1974.

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The “minority issue” also exists with respect to 

sex. As noted earlier, most librarians are women. Many 

library administrators consider it desirable to increase 

the number of men on the staff, especially at the 

professional level, in order to counter the profession’s 

“feminine” image. As a consequence, an effort to recruit 

men to the profession is underway in the Nation’s 

leading libraries and library schools. BLS survey results 

indicate that more men than ever before are available for 

employment as librarians. The increase in the supply of 

men is attributed to the tight job market for professionals in other fields; to salary improvements in the past 

few years which have made librarianship financially 

more attractive to men; and to active recruitment by the 

libraries themselves for men librarians. School library 

administrators offer an additional reason: The increasingly important audiovisual area attracts men.

At the same time, the growing strength of the 

women’s movement has drawn attention to the status of 

women in librarianship. Some see signs of growing 

inequality of opportunity for women in the profession. 

Anita R. Schiller of the University of California Library 

at La Jolla, for example, asserts that women constitute 

“the disadvantaged majority” in librarianship. She points 

out that the salaries of women librarians generally tend 

to be lower than those of men librarians; that the top 

positions in the Nation’s largest libraries are held by 

men; and that the proportion of women deans of 

accredited library schools is declining.51 Evidence such 

as this, coupled with strong pressure from concerned 

members, has spurred ALA to step up its activities in 

support of women’s status within the profession. The 

Social Responsibilities Round Table Task Force on 

Women is continuing its publicity efforts and is seeking 

additional information on salaries, training opportunities, promotions, and other indications of the employment status of women librarians. In 1973, the ALA ad 

hoc Committee on Equal Opportunities in Libraries 

prepared a policy statement on the equal employment 

rights of those employed, recruited, or seeking any type 

of library position. Also in 1973, California librarians 

secured official ALA support, by means of a resolution 

adopted at the 92d annual conference, for an ongoing 

legislative effort to correct discriminatory pay practices 

which adversely affect women in University of California 

libraries.5 2

51 Anita R. Schiller, “The Disadvantaged Majority,”

American Libraries, April 1970, pp. 345-49.

5 2 The situation in the University of California libraries is

copiously documented in the 1972 Report on the Status of

Women Employed in the Library of the University of California,

Berkeley. The report was compiled by women staff members,

represented by the Affirmative Action Program for Women

Committee (AAPWC).

With the enactment of the Equal Employment 

Opportunity Act of 1972, the Federal Government 

brought the force of law to bear to end discrimination in 

employment.5 3 Libraries and other educational and 

governmental institutions, which had been exempted 

from the requirements of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 

now are required to abide by provisions of that Act 

which forbid discrimination in employment practices 

because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. 

For years, many libraries have sought to assure equal 

opportunity in hiring, placement, promotion, salaries, 

and other employment practices. They have done so for 

reasons of conscience, good public relations, and good 

labor-management relations. Now, however, such efforts 

are required by law.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 

(EEOC) receives complaints of job discrimination and 

has the power to bring civil actions against employers 

who discriminate. These may result in substantial back 

pay awards, as was the case in several court orders 

announced in 1973, requiring employers found guilty of 

discriminatory employment practices to award back pay 

totalling several million dollars. Further, affirmative 

action plans are required of all institutions with Federal 

contracts or subcontracts.5 4 This requirement is 

especially important for academic libraries, since many 

colleges and universities have Federal contracts. Affirmative action requires the employer to take steps to make 

equal employment opportunity a reality. It includes 

establishing goals and timetables for hiring minority 

personnel. Additionally, it includes designing a plan to 

meet those goals and timetables through methods which 

usually include aggressive recruiting of minority personnel and specialized training.

EEOC guidelines for implementation of the Equal 

Employment Opportunity Act stress the importance of 

minority recruiting, and warn that the first opportunity

5 3 On Mar. 24,1972, the President signed Public Law 92-261,

amending Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The act,

with its amendment, is commonly called the Equal Employment

Opportunity Act of 1972. By amending the 1964 act, Congress

extended its coverage to educational institutions, governments,

governmental agencies, and political subdivisions that have 15

employees or more for each working day of 20 or more calendar

weeks in the current or preceding year. Public libraries with

fewer than 15 employees may be covered nonetheless if they are

not distinct from the municipal government.

54Pursuant to Amended Executive Order 11246, institutions

with Federal contracts or subcontracts are required to present

evidence of nondiscrimination in employment practices. To help

insure against discrimination, the Department of Labor Office of

Federal Contract Compliance in 1971 issued Revised Order No.

4, requiring institutions to submit affirmative action plans within

120 days of the commencement of the contract. Revised Order

No. 4 illustrates the elements of such a plan.

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for discrimination is in recruitment procedure.55 Survey 

data for 1973 show a great deal of aggressive minority 

recruiting, most notably in large public and academic 

libraries.

Asked whether the library had a minority recruitment 

program, about a third of the public libraries and half of 

the academic libraries in the survey affirmed that they 

did.

Recruitment methods cited most frequently by 

public and academic library administrators were:

1. advertising job openings in professional journals,

2. listing job openings with the National Registry

of Librarians,

3. recruiting at the ALA convention, and

4. listing job openings with local em ploym ent

agencies.

In addition, about half of the libraries with minority 

recruitment programs sought to reach potential minority 

job candidates by:

1. advertising in m inority newspapers and in

school and underground publications,

2. listing job openings w ith the Urban League and

other m inority-oriented organizations, and

3. recruiting at library schools with a predominantly black student body.

A substantial number of large academic and public 

libraries mentioned campus recruitment trips to the 

School of Library Science at Atlanta University, a school 

which serves as an employment clearinghouse for black 

librarians. Atlanta reportedly has tailored its program in 

order to prepare its library science graduates to work 

with the disadvantaged in urban public libraries. In 

addition to library education, the course deals with drug 

abuse, legal aid services, consumer education, Right-toRead efforts, and vocational guidance.5 6

Libraries were asked by BLS interviewers what 

difficulties they encountered in minority recruitment. 

The shortage of qualified minority applicants, cited 

repeatedly, appears to be the chief constraint on 

increasing the number of blacks and other minorities in 

professional positions in libraries.

The shortage of minority members with appropriate 

credentials has led some libraries to consider waiving 

their usual requirements. One public library surveyed

5 5 The ALA has drawn up two articles on this subject:

“Equal Employment Opportunity-Affirmative Action Plans for

Libraries,” American Libraries, October 1971, pp. 977-83, and

“LAD Report-EEOC Guidelines for Preventing Discriminatory

Employment Practices,” American Libraries, December 1972,

pp. 1207-09.

5 6 Reported in Thomas Childers and Kathlyn Adams,

“Recruitment of Minorities,” American Libraries, June 1972,

pp. 613-21.

reported that although it ordinarily requires a master’s 

degree in librarianship from an ALA-accredited school 

for beginning librarians, it would waive the master’s 

requirement for a promising black applicant with only a 

bachelor’s degree in librarianship. Another public library 

reported that although the position it was trying to fill 

required experience, a black candidate straight out of 

library school would be considered. Still other public 

libraries pointed out that civil service regulations or 

union contracts made it impossible to relax hiring 

requirements. A number of libraries find it difficult to 

recruit minorities because very few minority members 

live in the particular area, or would want to move there. 

Few libraries, moreover, have funds to defray the cost of 

relocating a minority librarian recruited in another part 

of the country. Many librarians have some difficulty 

justifying the cost of long-distance recruitment trips 

themselves.

The shortage of qualified minority applicants signifies, in turn, a scarcity of minority students in library 

schools. The ALA has urged library educators to take 

steps to attract minorities to the profession. Its Preconference on the Recruitment of Minorities, held in Dallas 

in 1971, recommended 44. .. that all library schools admit 

qualified minority applicants on a preferential basis and 

seek to provide financial aid for those who are economically handicapped.”57 The Preconference recommended 

a relaxation of library school admission standards in 

order to enroll promising minority candidates.

In line with yet another Preconference recommendation, several libraries and library schools have launched 

cooperative programs designed to attract minority students, to provide them with financial support while they 

are in library school, and to offer suitable job opportunities upon graduation. One such program is under way in 

New York, co-sponsored by Columbia University 

Libraries and the Columbia University School of Library 

Service. It offers college graduates from minority groups 

a work-study program and tuition waiver. Special efforts 

also are being made to train minority and disadvantaged 

students in library science at the doctoral level. In 1972, 

a consortium of the Big Ten universities and the 

University of Chicago started a 4-year program which 

will offer the Ph. D. in library science to black, Chicano, 

American Indian, Puerto Rican, and Appalachian white 

librarians.58

In 1970, the Federal Government took a strong 

position on encouraging minority representation in 

library education, by redirecting funds awarded under 

Title II-B of the Higher Education Act (library training 

and institute program) to give priority to training

5 7Op. cit., p. 617.

5 8 Reported in American Libraries, October 1972, p. 943.

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disadvantaged persons and retraining library personnel to 

work in disadvantaged communities.59

Despite these efforts, minorities make up a very small 

proportion of total library school enrollment. Available 

data suggest that minorities comprise no more than 3 to 

5 percent of enrollment in accredited library programs at 

all levels. Total full-time and part-time enrollment in 

1972 is estimated at roughly 10,000, of which only 300 

to 500 were minority members.60 ALA survey data 

revealed a marked increase in the number of minorities 

in accredited library education programs between 1969 

and 1972, but the numbers involved are quite small, 

compared to total enrollment. The 1972 survey by 

ALA’s Library Education Division and Office for Recruitment shows 310 blacks, 17 Mexican Americans, and 

1 Puerto Rican enrolled in the spring of 1972, compared 

to 156 blacks, 9 Mexican Americans, and 9 Puerto 

Ricans in 1969.61

Minority recruitment efforts by graduate library 

schools are made considerably more difficult by the 

relatively low pay level in librarianship, compared to 

other professions. An earlier section has shown that, as a

rule, salaries for librarians are not competitive with other 

professions which have comparable educational requirements.

5 9 See Frank A. Stevens and Frances Yvonne Hicks, “Higher

Education Act of 1965, Title II-B: Library Education,” The

Bowker Annual of Library and Book Trade Information 1972

(New York, R. R. Bowker Co., 1972).

60The estimate of 10,000 students in accredited library

education programs is based on enrollment data for 1969 and

1970 which show:

1969 1970

Undergraduate ................ ..............1,367 1,192

Master’s .............................

Advanced:

..............8,542 8,933

Specialists..............

Advanced:

.............. 176 150

D octoral................ .............. 324 344

See Margaret E. Monroe, “U.S. Graduate Library Education

Programs,” pp. 20-6 in Frank L. Schick and D. Kathryn

Weintraub, North American Library Education Directory and

Statistics 1969-1971 (Chicago, American Library Association,

1972).

6 1 Reported in American Libraries, October 1972, p. 942.

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Chapter 2. Projections of Manpower Demand and Supply

Factors affecting growth

Requirements for library manpower are determined 

by the interplay of a number of demographic, economic, 

and social factors. Among the most important are trends 

in population and enrollments; public support for new 

and improved library services; the level of governmental 

and other spending for library programs; developments 

in library automation and networking; and changes in 

library staffing patterns.

Population trends. Public library staffing needs are 

directly affected by population growth and by shifts in 

population patterns. The U.S. population was 181 

million in 1960 and 205 million in 1970. Total 

population is expected to reach 224 million by 1980 and 

236 million by 1985.62

Changes in the geographic, racial, age, and income 

distribution of the population all have implications for 

library service. Perhaps the most important trend, from 

the viewpoint of community services, has been the 

massive post-World War II population movement from 

rural and small town areas to metropolitan areas; from 

cities to suburbs; and from the South and Middle West 

to Florida, the South West, and the Pacific Coast. The 

impact of rapid population growth on schools, libraries, 

and other community services has been heaviest in the 

suburbs surrounding major metropolitan areas. The 

movement away from core cities to outlying suburbs has 

had generally adverse consequences for the cities, and 

has created problems of unplanned growth for the 

suburbs.

Administrators in all of the big city public library 

systems surveyed by BLS appear to grasp the implications for library service and staffing patterns of changing 

population patterns. In one of the most clearly unanimous findings of the study, urban public libraries

6 2 Based on series “E” projections of the U.S. Bureau of the

Census. See Current Population Reports, Series P-25, No. 493

(Bureau of the Census, 1972). Series E is one of several

alternative population projections, each based on a different

assumption as to future fertility levels. Series E implies an

ultimate completed fertility rate of 2,100; that is, 1,000 women

would have, on average, 2,100 births throughout their childbearing period.

indicated that they are committed to modifying traditional library services as much as necessary to reach the 

disadvantaged groups which comprise such a large—and 

growing—share of their clientele.

Enrollment trends. Student enrollment is an important 

determinant of staffing needs in school libraries and in 

academic libraries. At the elementary-secondary level, 

the 1970’s present the prospect of a decline in the 

number of children and teenagers in school. The current 

period of dwindling enrollments and diminished staff 

needs after nearly 20 years of expansion requires a 

considerable adjustment on the part of the U.S. educational establishment. Chart 5 highlights actual and 

projected elementary-secondary enrollment trends for 

the 25-year period from 1960 to 1985.6 3 Total enrollments show almost no growth between 1965 and 1980. 

However, a sharp increase is projected between 1980 and 

1985, mostly at the elementary level, as the children 

born to the post-World War II “baby boom” generation 

begin to reach school age.

Classroom teachers appear to bear the brunt of 

reduced job opportunities due to lower elementarysecondary enrollments. For the past several years, 

demand for school librarians, school psychologists, 

guidance counselors and other specialized categories of 

instructional personnel has remained fairly strong, despite reductions in enrollments. Between 1965 and 

1970, when elementary-secondary enrollment growth 

was coming to a halt, public school enrollment rose at an 

average annual rate of about 1.7 percent per year. 

Employment of classroom teachers rose 3.8 percent per 

year in this period, but employment of public school 

librarians rose much faster—more than 7.9 percent per 

year.

6 3 Based on estimated and projected enrollment data

published in Projections o f Educational Statistics to 1981-82,

1972 edition (Office of Education, 1973, OE 73-11105), and

unpublished projections to 1984-85 developed for BLS by the

Office of Education in January 1973. For a discussion of the

likelihood of a downward revision of these elementary and

secondary enrollment projections due to lower fertility trends,

see “Comment on assumptions” in appendix A.

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Chart 5

Annual rate of change in elementary-secondary school

enrollments, 1960-71 and projected 1972-85

I960: 41,981,000 1960-1970: +2.0% : 11

1970: 51,309,000 1970-1979: -0.5%

1979: 49,100,000 1979-1985: +1.7%

1985: 54,200,000 1970-1985: +0.4%

jjf§ 11

1961 65 70 75 80 1985

Source: National Center for Educational Statistics

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The very rapid growth since 1965 in the number of 

school librarians—all the more remarkable because it 

occurred in a period of decelerating enrollment 

growth—is chiefly attributable to pent-up demand for 

school library services. Following the 1965 enactment of 

the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, funds 

became available to meet this demand on a nationwide 

scale. The massive infusion of Federal funds specifically 

earmarked for instructional materials and for school 

library resources stimulated the expansion of school 

library services, led to the establishment of libraries in 

schools which previously had none, and resulted in the 

hiring of professional librarians and audiovisual specialists. From 1965 to 1970, when expenditures under 

ESEA Title II totaled nearly $341 million,64 the 

number of full-time equivalent librarians in the Nation’s 

public schools rose to 42,500 from approximately 

29,000.6 5

How will the current trend in elementary-secondary 

enrollments affect employment opportunities for school 

librarians? Indications are that demand for librarians will 

continue to rise, despite the anticipated decline in 

enrollments during the 1970’s. As noted above, employment of school librarians surged upward in the late 

1960’s, as funds became available to satisfy pent-up 

demand, and rapid employment growth occurred even 

though enrollment growth was slowing. Especially at the 

secondary level, much of the demand for adequate 

school library programs and personnel appears to have 

been released, and as a result, enrollment levels are likely 

to have a greater impact than before on school library 

manpower needs. Employment of school library personnel accordingly is expected to rise more rapidly between 

1980 and 1985 than in the 1970’s.

Institutions of higher education are expected to feel 

the effects of the current decline in elementarysecondary enrollments by the early 1980’s. More immediately, for the remainder of the 1970’s, college level

640ffice of Education expenditures for Title II of the

Elementary and Secondary Education Act have been as follows:

Fiscal year:

1966 ......................................................... $97,347,441

1967 ......................................................... 99,627,150

1968 ......................................................... 98,452,733

1969 ......................................................... 42,200,706

1970 ......................................................... 37,344,773

1971 ......................................................... 70,625,253

1972 ......................................................... 79,477,964

1973 ......................................................... 84,000,000

6 5 Statistics o f State School Systems 1965-66 (Office of

Education, 1968, OF-20020-66), p. 28 and Statistics of Local

Public School Systems, Fall 1970, Staff (Office of Education,

1972, OE-73-11415), p. 7.

enrollments are expected to continue to rise, but much 

less rapidly than before.66 The extraordinary rise in 

college enrollments of the 1960 decade is not likely to 

continue. It should be noted that changes in college level 

enrollments are much more difficult to predict than 

changes in elementary-secondary enrollments, since the 

latter are predominantly influenced by population 

trends. Enrollment trends at the college level are more 

speculative, since the proportion of the college-age 

population actually enrolled in school (currently about 

30 percent) fluctuates in response to economic, political, 

and social factors. Among the factors which affect 

young people’s educational decisions are the military 

draft situation, the expansion of junior and community 

college facilities, the availability of scholarships and 

student loans, and changes in the job market for college 

graduates. To further complicate the matter, a growing 

number of older persons are returning to college, or 

entering for the first time.

The slow growth of college-level enrollments in the 

1970’s, followed by a drop in the 1980’s, is expected to 

dampen demand for academic library staff.

The results of a recent study prepared for the Council 

on Library Resources67—show that while size of library 

staff is strongly associated with an academic institution’s 

enrollment class size, several other variables are more 

sensitive measures of staff size. The authors found that 

in academic libraries, staff size is significantly associated 

with size of collection, educational expenditures per 

student, and type (public or private) and size of 

institution. The unavailability of long-range projections 

for collection size and per student educational expenditures made it necessary, in developing the BLS projections for 1980 and 1985, to rely primarily on projected 

enrollment—even though this provides a cruder measure 

of staff size variance.

New and improved services. Library employment is 

sensitive to public demand for new library services and 

for improvements or modifications in existing services. 

Both employment levels and staffing patterns are affected by changes in the range of services the library 

offers. Such changes most often are brought about by

6 6 Based on estimated and projected enrollment data published in Projections o f Educational Statistics to 1981-82, 1972

edition (Office of Education, 1973, OE-73-11105) and unpublished projections to 1984-85 developed for the BLS by the

Office of Education in January 1973. For a discussion of the

likelihood of a downward revision of these higher enrollment

projections due to recent trends in college attendance, see

“Comment on assumptions” in appendix A.

6 7William J. Baumol and Matityahu Marcus, Economics of

Academic Libraries (Washington, D.C., American Council on

Education, 1973).

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shifts in the library’s role within the school, college, 

community or parent organization. In most cases, the 

range of library services offered, and the budget support 

these services receive, reflect current tax payer priorities 

in the competition for the tax dollar.

A number of public libraries surveyed by BLS view 

introduction of new services as a leading factor in future 

employment growth. Most new and innovative public 

library services come under the heading of “community 

outreach”—modifying traditional library services to meet 

the heeds of a particular segment of the community.

Current community outreach efforts by urban public 

libraries are part of a larger effort on the part of the 

cities to deal with acute social and economic problems. 

Community outreach includes programs for a number of 

special groups within the community: Children, teenagers, the elderly, the handicapped and minorities, for 

example. Community outreach sometimes involves joint 

action by the public library with other city or county 

agencies and programs—those dealing with adult education, for example, or with literacy, health, welfare, or 

employment. Outreach also may mean storefront exhibits, film festivals, craft programs, photography displays, storytelling in Spanish, puppet shows, daycare 

centers, thrift shops, senior citizen activities, services to 

migrants, and cooperative programs with Head Start, the 

Neighborhood Youth Corps, or the Job Corps.

School library services have undergone a transformation over the past 10 to 15 years. Fundamental changes 

have taken place in library collections, personnel, and 

programs, and in nearly all secondary schools (and many 

elementary schools as well), the library now plays an 

active role in the instructional process. This was not the 

case a decade or so ago. The shift in the library’s role 

and the broadening of its activities reflect developments 

in teaching methods and also the availability of a variety 

of instructional materials. The successful introduction of 

individualized instruction and self-directed learning 

created a pressing need for curriculum reform, for 

organizational changes, and for additional instructional 

materials for use both inside and outside the classroom. 

The use of innovative teaching methods and instructional materials has contributed to the broadening of the 

library’s role in elementary and secondary education. Of 

almost equal importance, however, is the greatly increased availability of funds, in particular, ESEA Title II 

funds specifically for instructional materials and for 

school library resources.

Recent developments in teaching methods and technologies are likely to continue through 1985, and 

beyond. According to a report submitted to the Commission on Population Growth and the American Future, the American educational system is expected to

continue moving in the direction of individualized 

instruction and greater diversity of teaching methods 

over the next 30 years.68 This forecast is based on 

consultation with leading educators and public decision 

makers. It implies a continued strong demand for 

counselors, psychologists, instructional materials and 

curriculum specialists, librarians, and other personnel 

involved in the effort to tailor each child’s educational 

program to his own abilities, interests, and goals.

Certain other developments in education are likely to 

influence future demand for school librarians and media 

specialists. First is the anticipated expansion of schooling at the prekindergarten level. A growing proportion of 

children are likely to begin formal schooling as early as 

age three. In elementary schools, the report to the 

Population Commission envisages less rigid scheduling of 

classes, and freer, more random access to literary, 

audiovisual, graphic, and mechanical materials. Instructional television and computer-assisted instruction also is 

foreseen. In secondary schools as well, the report 

anticipates extensive use of literary, audiovisual, 

mechanical, electronic, and graphic materials.

Government spending. Federal support for library programs is a fairly recent development. The first major 

piece of Federal library legislation was the 1956 Library 

Services Act, but spending levels under this and subsequent legislation peaked only in the mid- to late 1960’s. 

Over the past two decades, Federal expenditures for 

library construction, materials, services, and professional 

development have exceeded $1 billion. The future of 

Federal library legislation was clouded in 1974, but it 

appeared unlikely that spending levels in the remainder 

of the 1970 decade would return to earlier heights.

The massive infusion of money has had a significant 

impact on library services and facilities throughout the 

country, and has stimulated improvements and innovations in library programs in a variety of ways. Not least 

important is the effect upon library staff. Employment 

of librarians and library support personnel has grown at 

a rapid rate since the beginning of the 1960’s, and the 

level of professionalism has clearly risen. Much of this 

improvement in the quantity and quality of library 

personnel can be associated with the release of Federal 

funds.

More than $35 million in Federal funds has gone 

toward direct support for the advanced training of 

librarians and media specialists, enabling them to improve their skills and techniques and thus enhance the

6 8 Elliott R. Morss and Ritchie H. Reed, editors, Economic

Aspects o f Population Change, Vol. II of Commission research

reports (Washington, Commission on Population Growth and the

American Future, 1972).

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services of their libraries. This assistance has been 

available to the profession for nearly a decade, under the 

Higher Education Act of 1965, Title II-Part B, as 

amended, which supports training by means of fellowships for individuals enrolled in graduate library 

education programs, and sponsorship of special training 

institutes. Beginning in the late 1960’s, almost exclusive 

emphasis was placed on advanced training and continuing education for librarians who serve the disadvantaged. 

In 1973 alone, more than 200 minority and disadvantaged persons entered the profession as specialists in 

meeting the library needs of underprivileged groups as a 

result of federally funded institutes for library training.

The impact of Federal funds upon library employment is particularly evident in the Nation’s schools. 

Under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 

1965, Title II, as amended, substantial Federal funds 

have been expended for school library support over a 

short period of time. Since 1966, over $600 million in 

ESEA Title II funds have been made available to public 

and nonpublic schools alike for the purchase of printed 

and audiovisual school library materials. ESEA Title II is 

the principal source of Federal aid to school libraries, 

but not the only one. Additional funds have come, for 

example, from ESEA Title I, which provides assistance 

to meet the educational needs of deprived children; and 

from various other enactments. The availability of large 

amounts of money for the purchase of library materials 

is believed to have been a decisive factor in the rapid 

growth in employment of school librarians since 1965.

The level of Federal support for school libraries will 

continue to be a critical growth factor in the opinion of 

many observers. Expansion of employment opportunities for school librarians in the 1970’s—when enrollments are falling—will depend to a large extent on public 

sentiment concerning the level of financial support for 

education in general, and for school library programs in 

particular. On the Federal level, although the future of 

ESEA is uncertain, a continued Federal Government role 

in the funding of elementary and secondary education is 

likely. Both the level and the form of future Federal aid 

to education will have a direct impact on school 

librarians.

The question of school financing is not within the 

scope of this study. Nonetheless, a few observations are 

in order. On the basis of recent experience with ESEA, a 

strong case can be made for categorical support of 

school library programs. In many schools, the availability of funds specifically earmarked for books, periodicals, cassettes, filmstrips, and similar instructional materials served as the catalyst for expanding and improving school library programs, and for hiring specially 

trained personnel. Some experts in the field of school

librarianship believe that without the “seed money” 

made available by Title II of ESEA, many of the 

sophisticated, well-equipped libraries in the Nation’s 

schools would not exist. In the opinion of Geraldine 

Clark, assistant director for the Bureau of Libraries of 

the New York City Board of Education, ESEA has 

served as a “pump-primer.” 69

Writing in early 1973, Clark reported widespread 

concern that without Federal aid, school library services 

will suffer:

Most school librarians with whom I have talked 

recently believe that without categorical Federal aid 

and its prescription for maintaining local effort, the 

current level of local support for school libraries will 

be reduced . . .

BLS interviewers reported a similar mood of pessimism 

on the part of school librarians in many parts of the 

country.

Federal support of academic libraries is a major 

development of the past decade or so. Beginning with 

the National Defense Education Act of 1958, a number 

of Federal programs have stimulated the growth of 

college and university collections, helped provide buildings to house them, and provided assistance for the 

training of academic library staff.

However, the Federal legislation with the broadest 

impact upon college and university libraries undoubtedly 

has been Title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965. 

HEA Title II has influenced academic libraries both 

directly and indirectly. Directly, through Part A of Title 

II, which provides funds to colleges and universities for 

purchase of library materials. The growth of academic 

library collections has been stimulated considerably by 

these provisions, under which even the smallest college 

library can receive as much as $5,000 for acquisitions as 

a basic grant, and larger libraries as much as 20 times 

that figure in supplementary and special-purpose grants. 

Parts B and C of HEA Title II benefit the entire library 

community, not just academic libraries. Part B supports 

the professional training of librarians and other library 

personnel and also funds research and demonstrations. 

Part C, which supports certain Library of Congress 

acquisitions and cataloging activities, has had an impact 

on bibliographic and processing procedures in libraries 

throughout the country. Part C of HEA Title II gives the 

Librarian of Congress the responsibility of acquiring, 

insofar as possible, all library materials currently published throughout the world which are of value to 

scholarship, of cataloging these materials promptly, and 

of distributing bibliographic information through printed

6 9 Geraldine Clark, “Secondary School Libraries,” School

Library Journal, March 1973, p. 76-77.

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cards and other means, including machine-readable 

tapes. The considerable impact upon library staff needs 

of LC-supported innovations in cataloging and technical 

processing is described elsewhere in this report. (See 

section on Staffing Patterns.)

Other legislation has stimulated academic library 

development as well. Federal programs in the late 1950’s 

and early 1960’s provided funds for foreign area studies 

in U.S. universities, including substantial support for the 

purchase of books, documents, and other research 

materials. This resulted in an enormous broadening of 

U.S. university collections. Academic library staffs have 

of necessity become more specialized; in order to handle 

vastly increased collections in unfamiliar areas, large 

university libraries have added language and subject 

specialists, government documents librarians, and 

scholarly bibliographers.

Library buildings were among the principal campus 

beneficiaries of the Higher Education Facilities Act from 

its passage in 1963 to 1969, when appropriations were 

cut back. A large proportion of the Nation’s college and 

university libraries have been substantially rehoused 

since World War II, Federal funds having provided much 

of the stimulus for new construction. The construction 

of new buildings has given academic librarians an 

opportunity to incorporate sophisticated audiovisual 

collections and services into the building design. The 

close link between contemporary library design and 

media-based library services is nowhere more evident 

than in the junior colleges. The use of instructional 

technology and audiovisual learning materials has flourished in this setting, and newly built junior college 

libraries usually serve as multipurpose, multimedia learning centers.

Of all the Federal programs which provide financial 

support for libraries, Federal aid to public libraries has 

the longest history. Initiated in 1956 with enactment of 

the Library Services Act, the program originally was 

designed to establish public library service in rural areas. 

The scope of the law has since been expanded. Known 

since 1964 as the Library Services and Construction Act 

(LSCA) the program now provides money for urban as 

well as rural library service, for construction and 

modernization of public library buildings, for interlibrary cooperation, and for services to special groups— 

including the handicapped and the institutionalized.

Under Title I of LSCA, Federal money has been spent 

on demonstration projects to help communities meet 

their information needs more effectively and more 

imaginatively. Federal funds provided by LSCA also 

have contributed to the establishment and strengthening 

of library systems, whose many cooperative activities 

include the cooperative buying and processing of library

materials, as well as the creation and shared use of union 

catalogs. Some State library agencies have used LSCA 

Title I funds for education and personnel development. 

Particular emphasis is given to recruiting and training 

“community outreach” personnel who can serve as a 

liaison between the public library and the “disadvantaged”—individuals or groups within a community who, 

for geographic, economic, cultural, linguistic, or other 

reasons, exist outside the mainstream of community life. 

Title II of LSCA supports public library construction, 

and requires matching State and local funds.

By 1973, Federal funds had helped to build more 

than 1,800 public libraries. Some $160 million in LSCA 

Title II funds had been matched by about $400 million 

in State and local funds. Program activities under Title 

III include establishment or expansion of processing 

centers using modern technology and equipment; and 

coordination of all library acquisitions within a region. 

Funds available under LSCA have had a significant 

impact on the quality of library collections and personnel available to serve institutional populations—inmates, 

patients, or residents of penal institutions, reformatories, 

residential training schools, orphanages, and hospitals. 

“Capable, enthusiastic, service-minded” people reportedly are entering the field of institutional librarianship.70 

This can be attributed in large part, to the availability of 

financial support for varied and creative institutional 

library programs and services.

Library automation and networking. By the early 

1970’s, the emergence of the computer as an aid to 

library operations had affected work flows and staffing 

needs in perhaps 200 of the Nation’s largest libraries— 

among them, academic libraries, public libraries, and 

special libraries. 71 Most libraries which have operational 

systems use the computer for acquisitions, cataloging, 

and circulation control. A somewhat smaller number of

70Elizabeth H. Hughey, “The Library Services and Construction Act During Fiscal Year 1971,” pp. 214-19 in The Bowker

Annual o f Library and Book Trade Information, 17th ed., New

York, R.R. Bowker Co., 1972.

7 According to a 1973 report to the ALA’s Information

Science and Automation Division (ISAD), at least 25 or 30

major academic and public libraries had well-tested working

systems in operation at that time, and perhaps as many as 100 or

more had significant operations under way. (“Report of the

Committee on Research Topics, Journal of Library Automation,

September 1973, p. 133.) An earlier report on library automation activity in the Federal Government showed that about 60

Federal libraries had operational systems-mostly in cataloging

or serials control-although more than 130 Federal libraries were

involved in automation activity. (Peter Simmons, “Library

Automation,” pp. 167-201 in Carlos A. Cuadra, ed., Annual

Review o f Information Science and Technology, Vol. 8, Washington, D.C: American Society for Information Science, 1973).

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libraries have automated their indexing systems, and 

fewer still are active in the glamorous, but essentially 

experimental, area of automated information storage 

and retrieval. Special libraries are in the forefront in this 

area.

Automation of library operations necessitates a 

change in work assignments, and usually entails some 

departmental reorganization as well. Some libraries 

surveyed by BLS reported a reduction in staff requirements as a result of the automation of acquisitions and 

cataloging procedures. One large academic library reported a reduction in the need for professional staff in 

technical processing; another reported that computerization of acquisitions and cataloging had reduced the 

number of typists on the staff.

The manpower implications of library automation 

appear to be chiefly qualitative, not quantitative. 

Baumol and Marcus, among others, point out that 

computers are not a substitute for professional library 

personnel.72 Rather, machines accomplish enormous 

amounts of the nonprofessional, predominantly clerical, 

tasks which constitute such a large part of the daily 

work in any library. No decline in the demand for skilled 

professionals as a result of automation is foreseen by 

most authorities. Moreover, because of the relatively 

limited penetration of computers in libraries, reduction 

in nonprofessional staff requirements due to automation 

is likely to be moderate. Automation is feasible only in 

fairly large libraries, and there is little prospect, over the 

next decade or two, the medium-sized and small libraries 

will move to automate their operations. Few such 

libraries can afford the expense of custom-made software; manual methods are cheaper for them.

For these libraries, the most feasible method of 

benefiting from advances in library automation and 

technology appears to lie in cooperative efforts, by 

means of systems or networks of library computer-users; 

or in subscription to commercial services. Among the 

most active of the computer-based networks is the Ohio 

College Library Center (OCLC) system, which offers its 

members on-line access to both local input and MARCderived cataloging information,73 online location of

7 2 Baumol and Marcus, op. cit., p. 42.

73MARC is the acronym for Machine-Readable Cataloging, a

major endeavor by the Library of Congress in the field of

automated technical processing. The MARC program, initially

undertaken in the late 1960’s on an experimental basis,

constitutes an effort to develop and distribute cataloging data in

machine-readable form. The data base currently includes all

English language material cataloged by the Library of Congress

since 1968, and since October 1971, all records produced by the

Cataloging-in-Publication program. The MARC data base is used

by more than 200 libraries, predominantly large academic and

public libraries.

materials for interlibrary loan, and on-line training 

sessions for catalogers. Serial check-in and circulation 

subsystems are scheduled to be added to the OCLC 

system, although cataloging will continue to be the 

major thrust of the network’s effort.

Although automation appears to have relatively little 

effect on the number of library workers needed, it 

creates a demand for particular skills at both the 

professional and nonprofessional levels. Computer personnel are required—among them, systems analysts, 

programmers, and various categories of electronic data 

processing (EDP) personnel—keypunch operators, data 

typists, card-to-tape converter operators, console operators, and others. Knowledge of computer science in itself 

is generally not sufficient, however; some familiarity 

with librarianship—or expertise in library procedures— 

also is rquired. Some of the specific skills necessary for 

library automation personnel are noted later, in the 

discussion of computer personnel as a “new and emerging” library occupation.

Staffing patterns. Manpower requirements in library 

settings have been affected by the establishment of 

differentiated staffing patterns, which use the services of 

individuals with several different levels of training and 

skill. This has led, most importantly, to the increased use 

of personnel below the professional level: library technical assistants, clerks, and others. A number of studies 

attest to a downward trend in the ratio of professional 

to nonprofessional library personnel. According to data 

cited by Baumol and Marcus, for example, the size of 

the professional staff in college and university libraries 

declined relative to the number of nonprofessionals at a 

rate of about 1.5 percent per year during the two 

decades from 1950 to 1969. The authors attribute this 

decline, at least in part, to “widespread efforts on the 

part of library administrators to distinguish between 

professional and nonprofessional activities and to use the 

services of the professional staff as far as possible 

entirely for professional work.”74 Chiefly on the basis 

of Office of Education data, Bolino reports that the 

increasing use of nonprofessionals “is evident in all kinds 

of libraries.”75 Census data show that between 1960 

and 1970, the ratio of professionals to nonprofessionals 

fell, on average, from approximately 3:1 to 1:1. As 

noted earlier, nonprofessionals are used most extensively 

in public libraries and in academic libraries, probably

74 Baumol and Marcus, op. cit., p. 73.

7 5 August C. Bolino, Supply and Demand Analysis of

Manpower Trends in the Library and Information Field (Washington, D.C., 1969). Unpublished report submitted to the Office

of Education.

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because these tend to be larger institutions, with a 

greater need for differentiated staffing patterns.

Most authorities agree that recent trends in library 

staffing are likely to continue. The steadily growing use 

of nonprofessionals has clear manpower implications: 

Employment of library attendants and assistants is 

expected to grow much more rapidly, through 1985, 

than employment of professional librarians.

Estimates of demand in 1980 and 1985

Demand for librarians and library attendants and 

assistants over the 1970-85 period, in addition to the 

growth factors discussed in the previous section, will be 

influenced by projected patterns of growth in (1) the 

economy as a whole, in general, and (2) the educational 

services industry, in particular. The analysis of this 

combination of growth factors points to a marked 

slowdown in employment growth for library occupations. However, rates of employment growth will vary 

over the period as well as by type of library.

The basic set of projections of library manpower 

requirements to 1980 and 1985 reflects the BLS model 

of the economy in 1985.76 As such, they are influenced 

by the economic, political, and technological assumptions—some explicit, but others, even more numerous, 

implicit—underlying the Bureau’s model.77

• Fiscal, m onetary, and manpower training and educational programs are expected to achieve a satisfactory

balance betw een relatively low unem ploym ent (4

percent) and relative price stability (3 percent annual

increase in the implicit price deflator for gross

national product), permitting achievement o f the

long-term econom ic growth rate.

• The institutional framework of the American

econom y is not expected to change radically.

• Econom ic, social, technological, and scientific trends

are expected to continue, including values placed on

work, education, incom e, and leisure.

It is important to note the assumptions related to 

governmental roles: All levels of government will expand 

efforts to meet a variety of domestic needs, but State 

and local government activity will continue to grow 

relative to Federal activity. Federal, State, and local 

budgets will be close to balance by 1980 and 1985. 

Among the specific assumptions are that:

Increased Federal revenue resulting from growth in

the econom y will be used largely to expand Federal

7 6 See appendix A for more details on the methods used in

developing the 1980 and 1985 projections.

7 7Jack Alterman, “The United States Economy in 1985: An

Overview of BLS Projections,” Monthly Labor Review,

December 1973, pp. 3-7.

grants to State and local governments relative to

other categories o f expenditures although at a diminishing rate. The substantial increase in Federal

grants will permit State and local governments to

slow the rate of increase in their taxes.

The possible effects upon libraries of this latter broad 

assumption is unclear. It is not known, at this time, for 

example, whether Federal support to school and academic libraries will be direct—a continuation of categorical programs included in the Elementary and 

Secondary Education Act and the Higher Education 

Act—or indirect, as in the case of general or educational 

revenue sharing. As nonteaching supportive services, 

such as libraries, reach a point of adequacy in elementary and secondary schools and colleges and universities, 

these services may find their budgets increasingly tied to 

the same factors—principally changes in levels of enrollments—governing support, whether direct or indirect, to 

their respective parent institutions. Because of the 

uncertainties involved, an alternative set of projections 

for school and academic librarians was developed. 

These estimates, which are lower than the “basic” 

projections, are solely judgmental. For this reason, they 

should be interpreted as illustrative only. An alternative 

projection of employment requirements was not developed for public librarians. While support channelled to 

public libraries under the Library Services and Construction Act has provided the impetus for much of the 

recent expansion that has occurred in this area, public 

libraries have subsisted mainly on a very small but stable 

share of local government revenues. Overall, they are 

likely to maintain this competitive stance in the future. 

Within the public library sector, however, there are 

substantial differences in financial well-being. Suburban 

libraries tend to be in the strongest financial position 

and large urban libraries, in the most precarious position. 

Development of a comprehensive alternative projection 

for special librarians is impossible due to the numerous 

and diverse factors affecting employment growth in this 

occupation. No attempt was made to develop alternative 

projections for library attendants and assistants.

Nearly 90 percent of all librarians and library 

attendants work in the educational services industry, SIC 

82, as defined by the Standard Industrial Classification 

Manual.78 As in other industries, each of the educa7 8 Executive Office of the President, Office of Management

and Budget, 1967. SIC 82 includes elementary and secondary

schools; college, universities, professional schools, and junior

colleges; libraries and information centers; correspondence

schools; vocational schools, except vocational high schools; and

schools and educational services, not elsewhere classified. Thus,

this major industry group includes all school, academic, and

public libraries, plus some special libraries.

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tional services industries uses a unique combination of 

occupational skills. Although growth or decline of each 

occupation is affected by its own complex of factors, 

demand in occupations that have a high concentration in 

one or a few industries reflects heavily the changing 

patterns of employment growth in those industries. In 

the case of the educational services industries and the 

key education related occupations—teachers, librarians, 

and counselors—the same principal demand factors 

(population and enrollment) are at play.

Total employment in the educational services industry is projected to rise to nearly 9.1 million in 1985 

from slightly more than 6 million in 1970. (See table 

13.) This represents a considerable slowdown in employment growth from that experienced over the 1960-70 

period (2.8 percent annually compared with 5.3 percent). Looking over the projected period, employment 

in education services is expected to grow at an average 

annual rate of 2.9 percent between 1970 and 1980, 

reaching a level of nearly 8 million in 1980; growth, 

thereafter, is expected to decelerate to an average of 2.6 

percent yearly. Interestingly, the Bureau’s projections 

point to a rather sharp slowdown in the Nation’s overall 

economic growth starting about 1978 and continuing 

into the 1980’s.79

Table 13 indicates that growth will be slowest in 

elementary and secondary schools and colleges and 

universities—a reflection of overall enrollment trends. As 

noted in the previous section, elementary and secondary 

enrollments are projected to swing upward towards the 

end of the decade, stimulating employment growth in 

schools over the 1980-85 period. At about the same 

time, higher education enrollments will exhibit a pendulum effect and swing downward—contributing to a

7 9 For additional information and details on contributing

factors, see Jack Alterman, “The United States Economy in

1985: An Overview of BLS Projections,” Monthly Labor

Review, December 1973, pp. 3-7.

virtual halt in employment growth in colleges and 

universities. The rate of growth in employment in public 

libraries is expected to remain stable at about 4 percent 

throughout the period, reflecting demands of an expanding population for new and varied services. Growth in 

the other educational services industries, combined, is 

expected to be quite strong (6.5-percent annually) over 

the 1970-80 period—dropping thereafter, on average, to 

about one-half this level.

Employment requirements for librarians—reflecting in 

part the expected changes in employment growth in the 

educational services industries—are projected to rise 

from 115,000 in 1970 to 141,000 in 1980, and to 

162,000 in 1985. (See table 14.) While nearly 9 out of 

every 10 librarians work in the educational services 

industry, they are only a very small proportion of the 

total number of persons employed in this major industry 

grouping—1.6 percent in 1970. This ratio is expected to 

remain fairly stable throughout the projected period.

A comparison of growth rates shown in tables 13 and 

15 indicates that over the 1960-70 period, employment 

of librarians grew at nearly the same rate as the 

educational services industry—5.2 and 5.3 percent respectively. The projected patterns of employment 

growth over the 1970-80 and 1980-85 periods, however, 

are expected to differ. For example, employment 

growth for librarians, in contrast to that for the 

industry as a whole, is expected to be more rapid during 

the latter 5 years of the projected period. The principal 

cause is the projected rise in employment growth in 

elementary and secondary schools, where currently 

about 45 percent of all librarians are employed.

Employment of school librarians is projected to grow 

from 52,000 in 1970 to nearly 65,000 in 1980, and to 

nearly 80,000 by 1985. Table 15 indicates that over the 

1980-85 period, when school enrollments are projected 

to turn sharply upward, growth in employment of 

school librarians is expected to be nearly twice as fast as

Table 13. Employment in the educational services industry, estimated 1960 and 1970, and projected 1980

and 1985

Industry division

Employment in thousands Average annual rate of change

(percent)

1960 1970 1980 1985 1960-70 1970-80 1970-85 1980-85

Total, educational services........................ 3,600 6,025 7,990 9,080 5.3 2.9 2.8 2.6

Elementary and secondary

schools ....................................................................... (2) 4,110 5,120 6,000 <2) 2.2 2.6 3.2

Colleges and universities................................................ (2) 1,576 2,270 2,375 (2) 3.7 2.8 .9

Libraries1 .......................................................................... (2) 82 120 145 (2) 3.9 3.9 4.0

Educational services.

n.e.c ............................................................................ (2) 257 480 560 (2) 6.5 5.4 3.3

1 Public libraries.

2 N o t available.

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Table 14. Projected employment requirements for librarians, by type of library, 1970-85

Type of library

Estimated 1970

employment

Projected requirements for librarians

Basic Alternative low

1980 1985 1980 1985

All libraries .... 115,000 141,000 162,000 132,000 148,000

School.................................... 52,000 64,500 79,500 59,000 69,500

P u b lic .................................... 26,500 30,000 33,000 30,000 33,000

Academ ic ............................. 19,500 26,500 27,000 22,500 23,000

Special ................................. 17,000 20,000 22,500 20,000 22,500

in1 the 1970’s. Growth in school library staff requirements is expected to be stimulated over the entire 

projected period by an expected continued broadening 

of the school library’s role in the instructional process. 

The small share (1.3 percent) that employment of 

librarians represents of total employment in schools is 

expected to remain constant throughout the projected 

period. On the other hand, the proportion of school 

librarians to total librarians is expected to rise from 45 

percent in 1970 to nearly 50 percent by 1985.

Employment requirements for public librarians are 

projected to rise from 26,500 in 1970 to 30,000 in 

1980—an annual rate of growth of 1.3 percent. Contributing to the relatively slow growth of librarian 

employment in public libraries is the increasing use of 

paraprofessional personnel. Changes in staffing patterns 

are particularly evident in large public libraries where 

specially trained library technicians and library clerks are 

relieving professional librarians of certain routine and 

clerical duties. In the 1980’s, the rate of employment 

growth is expected to accelerate to 2 percent a year, on 

average—with projected requirements for public librarians reaching 33,000 by 1985. Despite this anticipated 

upward surge, employment of librarians as a proportion 

of total employment in public libraries will drop to 24 

percent by 1985 from about 32 percent in 1970. In sum, 

public libraries are expected to decline as an area of job 

opportunities for librarians—accounting for about 20 

percent of total librarian employment in 1985, compared to 24 percent in 1970.

Employment requirements for academic librarians are 

projected to increase to 25,500 in 1980 from 19,000 in 

1970—an average annual rate of 3.1 percent. Between 

1980 and 1985, however, the rate of growth is expected 

to drop sharply to an annual average of .3 percent, 

reflecting the virtual halt in employment growth in 

colleges and universities during this period because of 

the projected sharp drop in higher education enrollments. As a proportion of total employment in colleges 

and universities, employment of academic librarians is a 

very small share-1.2 percent in 1970. This ratio is 

expected to inch downward to 1.1 percent by 1985.

Because of the wide divergence in rates of growth over 

the projected period, employment of academic librarians 

as a proportion of total librarian employment is expected to increase from 17 percent in 1970 to 19 

percent in 1980, then drop back to 17 percent by 1985.

Because no one variable or set of variables apply to 

special librarians as a group, the projections of employment requirements in this field of library science were 

developed entirely within the framework of the Bureau’s 

industry-occupational matrix program.80 As such, they 

reflect changing patterns of occupational composition in 

the specific industries employing special librarians. As 

indicated in table 14, employment of special librarians is 

projected to increase from 17,000 to 20,000 between 

1970 and 1980 (1.6 percent annually), rising thereafter 

at a more rapid pace (2.4 percent) to 22,500 by 1985. 

Throughout the projected period, the noneducational 

services industries, combined, are expected to continue 

to account for about 10 percent of total employment of 

librarians.

Employment requirements for library attendants and

assistants are expected to rise sharply, from 120,000 in 

1970 to 173,000 in 1980 and 212,000 in 1985. (See 

table 16.) Table 17 indicates how employment growth 

will vary by type of library over the projected period. A 

comparison of data in tables 15 and 17 shows that

8 °See appendix A for information on how such estimates are

derived.

Table 15. Average annual rates of change in employment of librarians, by type of library, 1960-70, and

projected 1970-80 and 1980-85

Type of library

Employment

1960-70

Projected requirements

1970-80 1980-85

All libraries . . . 5.2 2.0 2.8

School ............................... 5.3 2.2 4.3

Public................................. 4.1 1.3 2.0

Academ ic.......................... 6.5 3.1 .3

Special............................... 5.5 1.6 2.4

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growth in employment of library attendants and assistants—while projected to grow at a more rapid pace than 

librarians—will follow the same pattern of growth 

expected for librarians. The more rapid rate of growth 

for attendants and assistants reflects continued attention 

to task analysis, job redesign, and the management 

techniques designed to promote effective utilization of 

staff. Growing use of paraprofessional personnel in 

libraries is in line with a similar trend observed in 

education, health, welfare, and other communityoriented industries.

The following tabulation illustrates how employment 

of library attendants and assistants, as a proportion of 

total employment is expected to shape up in each of the 

educational services industries:

1970 1980 1985

Total, educational

services ................... 1.7 1.9 2.1

Elementary and secondary

schools...................................... .5 .5 .7

College and universities.............. 2.5 2.6 2.6

(Public) libraries.......................... 55.2 56.0 58.6

Educational services, n.e.c........... .3 .2 .3

Expected changes in the percent distribution of 

library attendants and assistants, by type of employment 

setting, are illustrated in the following tabulation:

1970 1980 1985

Total, all industries1 .. . . 100 100 100

Total, educational services . . . . . . 87 92 89

Elementary and secondary schools............ . . 16 16 19

Colleges and universities ............................. . . 33 35 29

(Public) libraries 38 40 40

Educational services, n .e .c .......................... 1 1 1

All other industries, combined . . . 13 8 11

1 D etail m ay no t add to 1 0 0 due to rounding.

Table 16. Projected employment requirements for

library attendants and assistants, by type of library,

1970-85

Type of I ibrary Estimated 1970

, employment

Projected

requirements

1980 1985

All libraries .. . 120,000 173,000 212,000

School................................. 19,000 27,000 40,000

P u b lic ................................. 45,000 67,000 85,000

Academic .......................... 40,000 59,000 62,500

Special ............................... 16,000 20,000 24,500

Table 17. Average annual rates of change in employment of library attendants and assistants, by type of

library, 1960-70 and projected 1970-80, and 1980-85

Type of library Employment

1960-70

Projected

requirements

1970-80 1980-85

All libraries .......... 12.5 3.7 4.1

School.................................... 3.6 8.2

P u b lic .................................... ( M 4.0 4.8

Academic ............................. ( M 3.9 1.1

Special ................................. ( M 2.3 4.1

1 N o t available.

Specific occupational needs—a qualitative assessment

This section presents a qualitative assessment, based 

largely upon BLS survey results, of specific occupational 

skills that will be sought by libraries over the projected 

period. The discussion focuses on three key areas of 

expertise, each involving special skills or educational 

preparation.

Possible reactions by administrators of library education programs to prospective supply-demand conditions 

for librarians are examined later in the report. (See 

section on Implications for Training.) The information 

in this section gives an added dimension to the gross 

numbers on projected requirements and supply by 

focusing on those occupations in which growth is 

expected to be particularly strong in the 1970-85 

period—community outreach personnel, audiovisual or 

media personnel, and computer personnel. All require 

specialized training.

Community outreach personnel Demand is expected to 

be strong through 1985 for community outreach personnel to staff urban public library programs which serve 

minority groups, the poor, the elderly, and other special 

groups. Community outreach personnel include librarians equipped with special skills for dealing with 

minorities and the disadvantaged; professional workers 

in such related fields as social work, sociology, and social 

psychology; and, at the nonprofessional level, assistants 

or aides who are familiar with the community and 

proficient in imparting basic information to individuals 

or groups.

The BLS survey results point to a strong demand for 

community outreach librarians; fully 40 percent of the 

public libraries surveyed hope to add community outreach specialists to their staff during the decade of the 

1970’s. One large library in the Midwest reported to BLS 

interviewers that changing inner-city service patterns will 

create a demand for new programs, and for specially

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qualified staff. Among the qualifications sought is 

graduate training in social work as well as in librarianship, and a demonstrated ability to work with groups.

Media personnel Audiovisual technology has affected 

staffing patterns in nearly all types of libraries. Nowhere, 

perhaps, has the emergence of media programs had a 

greater impact on personnel needs than in school 

libraries and junior college libraries.

School library programs and staff needs have been 

strongly influenced by developments in instructional 

technology and by innovations in instructional materials. 

The widespread availability of equipment and materials 

has facilitated the classroom use of a variety of 

audiovisual materials—filmstrips, tape and disc recordings, slides, transparencies, and 16mm motion picture 

films. In addition, some school systems have incorporated various instructional technologies into the curriculum. Among the “teaching machines” already in use 

are language laboratories, cable television, and the 

computer. The field of educational technology has 

flourished in recent years because of developments in 

learning theory; technological breakthroughs; the availability of funds to purchase instructional machines and 

materials; and the emergence of a new cluster of 

professional and paraprofessional occupations.

The transformation of the traditional school library 

to the heavily nonprint-media-oriented “media center” 

or “instructional materials center” has necessitated the 

hiring of personnel with special training in audiovisual 

technology, curriculum development, and so forth. 

Some school systems have opted for two separate 

departments: The library, headed by a school librarian; 

and the media center or audiovisual center, headed by a 

media specialist or audiovisual coordinator. In other 

school systems, library and audiovisual programs are 

administered jointly, in a unified media program staffed 

by librarians, audiovisual specialists, and support personnel. The unified approach is officially recommended 

by the two principal associations representing librarians 

and audiovisualists: The American Association of School 

Librarians and the Association for Educational Communication and Technology.81

Responses to the survey make it clear that the 

widespread acceptance of educational technology, and 

the introduction of new instructional methods and 

materials, has created a need for specially-trained personnel. Two out of 3 school libraries surveyed looked

8 American Association of School Librarians and Department of Audiovisual Instruction of the National Education

Association (now the Association for Educational Communication and Technology), Standards for School Media Programs,

Chicago and Washington, D.C., ALA and NEA, 1969.

forward to hiring a media specialist or media technician, 

or both, within the next 10 years. Roughly 15 percent 

of the school libraries in the survey hoped to add an 

instructional materials specialist to the staff. Other new 

and emerging occupations reported by school libraries 

w ere: D istrict supervisor, computer specialist,

curriculum specialist, and technical assistant.

“Media” clearly is the growth area in school library 

staffing. However, in order to fully assess future manpower needs and educational requirements in the field of 

school librarian ship, it is important to obtain additional 

information on the type of professional training media 

specialists are expected to offer. Currently, there are 

several different routes to specialization:

• Master’s degree in librarian ship, with specialization in 

school librarianship and course work in media technology ;

• Master’s degree in education, with specialization in 

media technology;

• Master’s degree in communications technology, with 

specialization in school media.

The BLS survey did not produce conclusive data on 

the type and level of professional education most 

appropriate for newly hired media specialists. Several 

school libraries in the survey specified that candidates 

for media specialist positions should combine preparation in audiovisual or media technology with librarianship, but most school libraries simply stated that media 

specialists should offer preparation in audiovisual or 

media technology and a background in education, 

including course work in educational psychology and 

curriculum development. The school libraries in the BLS 

sample did not address either of two important issues: 

(1) should the media specialists have formal training in 

librarianship, in audiovisual technology, or in both 

fields; and (2) at what level should this training be 

taken? Is an undergraduate degree sufficient?

Although firm evidence is lacking, it appears that the 

master’s degree in librarianship is an appropriate qualification for a school media specialist provided course 

work in education and audiovisual technology is included in the graduate or undergraduate training. Without some specialization in education or media, or both, 

the graduate degree in library science may not suffice. 

Moreover, persons with a bachelor’s or master’s in 

education, including a specialization in audiovisual methods and materials, may well be in a position to compete 

successfully with library science graduates for school 

media positions.

School libraries also report a strong demand for 

media technicians—high school or community college 

graduates with the technical skills to produce materials,

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repair and maintain equipment, and assist with various 

kinds of presentations. Media technicians are not the 

same as library technicians. They are expected to have 

the skills to operate and maintain film, television, radio, 

graphic, and art equipment. Many media technicians are 

men.

In colleges and universities as well, the growing use of 

instructional technology and audiovisual materials has 

created a strong demand for media specialists and media 

technicians. This demand is expected to continue. Over 

45 percent of the academic libraries surveyed saw some 

possibility of hiring a media specialist in the future. 

Nearly 15 percent expected to hire a media technician. 

Approximately 5 percent of the academic libraries 

surveyed thought it likely they would need to hire an 

instructional materials specialist.

In its 1972 report on instructional technology in 

higher education,8 2 the Carnegie Commission on Higher 

Education suggests that computers, cable television, 

videocassettes, and other forms of electronic technology 

will be “generally introduced” in academic libraries 

between 1980 and 1990, and will be “generally in use” 

in libraries after 1990. Some implications of the expanding use of informational technology in higher education, 

in the opinion of the Carnegie Commission, are these:

• The library, if it becomes the center for the storage 

and retrieval of knowledge in whatever form, will 

become a more dominant feature of the campus. New 

libraries should be planned with the potential impact 

of technology in mind.

• New buildings should be built with adequate electronic components. They should also be planned for 

24-hour use.

• New professions of multimedia technologists are 

being born.

• On campus there will need to be some agency 

(whether it is the library or some other facility) that 

will provide equipment and materials, assist in the 

preparation of programs, and aid in the presentation 

of programs.

In public libraries, too, the growing importance of 

multimedia collections has produced a demand for 

appropriately trained personnel at the professional and 

non professional levels. Of the public libraries surveyed, 

34 percent anticipated a future need for media specialists or media technicians, or both.

Computer personnel Librarians have made considerable 

progress over the past decade in understanding and using

8 2 The Fourth Revolution: Instructional Technology in

Higher Education, A Report and Recommendations by the

Carnegie Commission on Higher Education (New York,

McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1972).

computers. Beginning with the 1963 Conference on 

Libraries and Automation,83 and continuing through 

the 1970 Conference on Interlibrary Communications 

and Networks,84 great effort has been expended in 

education and training through special courses, conference programs, and workshops. Most library schools 

reportedly require graduates to have some familiarity 

with systems analysis and data processing techniques.85 

Many librarians have become expert programmers, and 

have worked successfully with local computer staff 

members (in a university computer center, for example) 

in designing systems. The demand for computer-oriented 

library personnel is expected to continue.

Among the public libraries surveyed, 43 percent 

foresaw a possible future need for computer specialists 

or clerks, or both, with electronic data processing skills. 

Fully 55 percent of the academic libraries surveyed 

foresaw some need for a computer specialist, and 

another 15 percent anticipated a possible future need for 

keypunch operators and automated data systems typists.

Employers were asked what qualifications they would 

look for in hiring a computer specialist, but no clear 

preference emerged. Some libraries opted for systems 

analysts and programmers with library experience, 

whereas others preferred librarians with computer skills. 

The survey results did not yield a clear preference, on 

the part of employers, for computer specialists with a 

graduate degree in librarianship, a degree in computer 

science, both degrees, or some combination of graduate 

study and experience. The absence of a single preferred 

route to qualification as a library systems analyst or 

systems librarian has been noted by Carter.86 Describing 

the emergence, in recent years, of a cadre of individuals 

experienced in library systems analysis and automation, 

Carter points out that library schools are capable of 

providing “considerable training” in automation principles and the techniques of systems analysis. Just a few 

years ago this was not the case, and libraries in need of 

systems personnel tended to turn to individuals with 

prior experience in systems analysis or programing, or 

both. A number of these individuals have been attracted

8 3 Conference on Libraries and Automation, Airlie Foundation, 1963, Libraries and Automation, Proceedings, edited by

Barbara E. Markuson (Washington, U.S. Government Printing

Office, 1964).

8 4 Conference on Interlibrary Communications and Networks, Airlie House, 1970, Proceedings o f the Conference on

Interlibrary Communications and Information Networks, edited

by Joseph Becker (Chicago, American Library Association,

1971).

8 5 Barbara Evans Markuson, “An Overview of Library Systems and Automation,” Datamation, February 1970, pp. 60-68.

8 6 Ruth C. Carter, “Systems Analysis as a Prelude to Library

Automation,” Library Trends, April 1973, pp. 505-21.

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to the library profession and have attained education 

and experience in both areas. Carter observes that 

“ . . . at present there does not seem to be any serious 

shortage of individuals with experience or expertise in 

library systems analysis.”8 7

Replacement needs

Projections of changes in manpower requirements by 

occupation and industry provide only one part of the 

information on the total number of job openings which 

will need to be filled in the years ahead. In most 

occupations, more workers are needed to fill positions 

left vacant by workers who retire or die, than are needed 

to staff new positions created by growth of the field. 

The Bureau’s projections to 1985 indicate that replacement needs will account for two of every three job 

openings throughout the economy between 1972 and 

1985.8 8

Replacements generally exceed the average in occupations that (1) employ many women, and (2) have a large 

proportion of older workers who have relatively few 

years of working life remaining. Chart 6 and table 18, 

which summarize expected job openings for librarians 

over the projected period, indicate that the number of 

librarians needed to replace those who retire, die, or 

leave the labor force for other reasons will greatly 

exceed the number required to fill newly added positions. Of the 168,000 job openings expected over the 

entire 1970-85 period, (under the basic model), 121,000 

or nearly three of every four are expected as a result of 

vacancies that will occur due to deaths and retirements. 

Only 1 vacancy in 4 will be created by expansion 

or by the introduction of new programs and positions. 

This is in marked contrast to the situation of the 1960’s 

when very rapid employment growth caused staff 

expansion to account for over half the job openings for 

librarians.

The situation for library attendants and assistants is 

similar to that for librarians. (See table 19.) Between 

1960 and 1970, expansion accounted for 83,000 or 

more than two-thirds of the total estimated 120,000 job 

openings for library attendants and assistants. Over the 

1970-85 period—with employment of library attendants 

and assistants expected to grow only about one-third as 

fast as during the 1960 decade—the proportion of job 

openings resulting from replacement needs is expected 

to rise to 62 percent, nearly a reversal of the earlier 

trend.

8 7Op. cit., p. 518.

8 8 Neal H. Rosenthal, “The United States Economy in 1985:

Projected Changes in Occupations,” Monthly Labor Review,

December 1973, pp. 18-26.

Chart 6

Estimated number of annual job

openings for librarians resulting

from growth and replacement

needs, 1960-70 and projected

1970-85

Number (in thousands)

15

12

1960-70 1970-85

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Table 18. Estimated openings for librarians, 1960-85

Openings

Basic Alternative low

1960-70 1970-80 1970-85 1980-85 1970-80 1970-85 1980-85

Total ............................. 89,000 100,000 168,000 65,000 89,000 148,000 57,000

Employment g ro w th ................... 46,000 26,000 47,000 21,000 17,000 33,000 16,000

Replacement needs1 ................... 43,000 74,000 121,000 44,000 72,000 115,000 41,000

1 Estimates o f job openings due to separations fro m th e labor

force w ere developed according to standard BLS procedures as

o u tlin ed in V o lu m e I o f Tomorrow's Manpower Needs (B LS

B ulletin 1 6 0 6 , February 1 9 6 9 ).

Table 19. Estimated openings for library

attendants and assistants, 1960-85

Openings 1960-70 1970-85 1970-80 1980-85

T o ta l.............. 120,000 243,000 142,000 97,000

Employment growth .. 83,000 92,000 53,000 39,000

Replacement needs1 37,000 151,000 89,000 58,000

1 Refer to fo o tn o te 1 , tab le 18.

Many job openings also are created because of 

occupational shifts. However, data for estimating transfer losses and gains to the library profession are not 

available at the present time—a situation which applies 

to nearly all occupations.89 Estimates of job openings in 

this section, therefore, do not include transfers.

8 9 The BLS currently is analyzing recently acquired 1970

census data that should provide some insight on detailed

occupational mobility between 1965 and 1970.

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Chapter 3. Projections of Manpower Supply

The principal sources of supply of librarians are new 

college graduates, labor force reentrants and delayed 

entrants, and occupational transfers. Together they 

constitute the potential pool of persons to fill jobs 

created by growth and replacement needs.

New college graduates

New college graduates are anticipated to be the 

primary source of supply for the library profession 

throughout the 1970’s and into the eighties. U.S. Office 

of Education projections indicate that over the 1970 to 

1985 period, an annual average of 11,200 bachelor’s and 

master’s degrees will be awarded in the field of library 

science.90 This is 2Vi times the annual average for the 

1960 to 1970 period.

Chart 7 illustrates the rapid growth in the number of 

library science bachelor’s and master’s degrees awarded 

over the sixties and in the early 1970’s. While growth is 

expected to continue, the rate of growth is projected to 

slow. Between 1960 and 1970, the average annual rate 

of growth was more than 12 percent—3Vi times the 

projected rate for the 1970-85 period. Thus, while the 

number of graduates earning degrees in library science 

will continue to expand, the growth surge of the sixties 

will subside considerably, and after 1980 there is 

expected to be a significant leveling off in the number of 

degrees awarded.

Not all those who receive their degrees in library 

science can be considered part of the effective supply of 

librarians. Some degree recipients are already in the 

labor force. Others accept employment outside the field 

of librarianship. Still others delay entry into the labor 

force to continue their education, or to assume homemaking or family responsibilities. The projections of new 

graduates who will become a part of the effective supply 

are developed considering these factors.

An estimated four-fifths of all persons who will 

receive a bachelor’s or master’s degree in library science 

are expected to enter the library profession. This entry 

rate is based on information relating to patterns of entry

9 0Projections o f Educational Statistics to 1981-82, 1972 ed.

(Office of Education, 1973, OE 73-11105), pp. 52-57.

of college graduates as a whole into the labor force and 

specifically of graduates of programs in teaching and 

librarianship.91 An estimated 134,000 new graduates are 

expected to seek entry as librarians over the 1970-85 

period, or an annual average of about 9,000.

Other sources of supply

The supply of new graduates will be augmented by 

reentrants, delayed entrants, and persons transferring 

into the occupation. Reentrants are workers who leave 

the labor force temporarily, and then return. In a field 

such as librarianship in which a large number of 

professional women have traditionally been employed, 

reentry may represent a significant source of supply. 

Delayed entrants to the field are persons who do not 

enter the labor force immediately upon graduation but 

seek entry after some period in a nonlabor force status. 

Many persons also may enter the profession by transferring from other occupations or by occupational 

upgrading.

As employment in the occupation increases, the 

number of persons in these supply categories is expected 

to grow. As more people enter and leave the occupation 

and as the number of new graduates grows, the potential 

supply of reentrants and delayed entrants may be 

expected to expand; and as more persons with higher 

levels of educational attainment enter the labor force, 

the potential for occupational transfer also may increase.

Since data are available only on entry patterns of new 

library science degree recipients into the profession and 

these data indicate a fairly consistent entry rate over the 

past years, the basic assumption underlying the overall 

supply analysis is that these patterns of entry will be

91 Occupational Outlook for College Graduates, 1974-75 ed.

(BLS Bulletin 1785, 1974). Teacher Supply and Demand in

Public Schools, 1972 (Washington, National Education Association, Research Report 1972-R8). (Information is published

annually in the Teacher Supply and Demand in Public Schools

Reports.)

Carlyle J. Frarey and Carol L. Learmont, “Placements and

Salaries, 1972: We Hold Our Own,” Library Journal, June 15,

1973, pp. 1880-86. (Information is published annually in the

Library Journal in June.)

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maintained. The job prospects for persons other than 

new graduates must be derived by implication. Lack of 

data makes an independent supply analysis impossible. 

While it is known that delayed entrants, reentrants, and 

occupational transfers may represent significant supply 

components, the extent of their significance is not 

measurable. There is a lack of information on patterns 

of reentry and delayed entry as well as inter-occupational mobility, and little is known even about the operation 

of the factors which affect entry into the occupation.

Library attendants and assistants

Estimates of the supply of library attendants and 

assistants were not developed because (1) there is no 

clear-cut definition of the occupation in terms of skill 

content and it is difficult to pinpoint the sources of 

occupational supply, and (2) there is little information 

on patterns of entry into the occupation from various 

sources of supply.

The lack of clarity is defining the nature of the work 

of library attendants and assistants is reflected in the 

very inconsistency of terminology which characterizes 

the occupation. Job titles, including “library technical 

assistant,” “library aide,” “library attendant,” and so 

forth, describe persons variously employed. Work may 

range from simple clerical tasks to functioning in a truly 

paraprofessional capacity, providing auxiliary library 

services which require much more highly specialized 

skills.

In the 1970 Census of Population, occupational 

mobility information was collected, and the data indicate to some extent the diversity of the occupational 

supply sources of library attendants and assistants. 

Persons who reported their 1970 occupation as “library 

attendant” were engaged in a wide variety of activities 5 

years previous. Slightly over one-half were not in the 

labor force; about one-fourth reported themselves to 

have been library attendants 5 years before. The 

remaining one-fourth were scattered over the occupational spectrum. About half of this remaining group 

were in other clerical occupations in 1965, but they 

were not concentrated in any one in particular. Many 

library attendants in 1970 had been in other “clerical 

and kindred worker” occupations in 1965. Of 47 

detailed occupations in the broad occupational category, 

in 1970 library attendants had been in 34 of these in 

1965. Others reported entering the occupation from 

professional fields including librarianship and teaching, 

and some reported themselves to have been salesworkers 

or service workers. A few were scattered throughout the 

other broad occupational categories.

Entrants to an occupation may receive occupational

training in colleges and universities, junior and community colleges, formal employer training programs, 

self-study, vocational education programs at the secondary and postsecondary levels, and informally on the job. 

In an occupation in which minimal skills are required, 

the potential sources of training are more numerous, and 

in an occupation in which training is less rigorous, entry 

from the training source into the occupation is less 

certain and continued attachment to it is more tenuous. 

Specialized skills training limits the potential sources of 

training, and entry may be restricted to those with 

formal education. Also, the occupational mobility out of 

a field is limited by the investment in training which the 

individual has made.

Overall, the training of library attendants and assistants varies considerably. Responses to the BLS Library 

Manpower survey showed that fewer than 1 percent of 

staff members classed as library technical assistants had 

the associate of arts degree in library technology. The 

University of Maryland’s 1973 survey of small and 

medium-sized Federal libraries in the Washington, D.C. 

area found that only 0.8 percent of the technicians 

covered by the survey had the associate degree with a 

major in library science. Some library attendants and 

assistants have college training; some have only a high 

school education which has been supplemented by 

nothing more than the most informal on-the-job orientation with work in a library. With occupational training 

so diverse, to specify the sources of training is virtually 

impossible. Even when sources of training are known 

though, the number of persons trained may be unknown. For example, while on-the-job programs in 

individual libraries and library systems are available, no 

comprehensive data on the number of persons so trained 

are available.

To some extent training of library attendants and 

assistants has become more formalized. The proliferation 

of community and junior colleges throughout the 1960’s 

and rapid enrollment growth during the decade have 

helped establish 2-year colleges as a source of supply in 

various technical and paraprofessional fields. Community and junior college enrollments between 1960 

and 1970 more than tripled, and their anticipated 

expansion in the future together with increased emphasis 

on the career education function of the community 

college likely will make them a more significant supply 

factor.

Supply projections capability, however, is limited by 

lack of historical data. The U.S. Office of Education has 

data on associate degrees and other awards below the 

baccalaureate only since 1965-66. While these include 

the “library assistant technologies” curriculum, no projections of degrees awarded below the baccalaureate are

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developed and projections of 2-year college enrollments 

are not available by curriculum.

Library technical assistant training programs are 

concentrated to a considerable extent in California 

which has allocated substantial resources to the development of its higher education system. According to the 

latest institutional data on degrees conferred, of the 471 

associate degrees and other formal awards below the 

baccalaureate awarded in library assistant technologies in 

1970-71, nearly one-third were awarded to graduates of 

California institutions, and of the 24 States with 

programs California had nearly one-third of the total 

number.

Supply analysis also is limited to the extent that 

training paths are not mutually exclusive. Data on 

graduates of library technology programs may understate the actual impact of these programs. Many persons 

already employed in libraries enroll for several courses

but do not complete the formal 1- or 2-year programs. 

The U.S. Office of Education information on full- and 

part-time attendance status indicates that of those 

receiving formal education, on-the-job training represents—for some, at least—a vital element in the occupational entry process. Of persons enrolled in library 

technical assistant training programs in 1970-71, nearly 

two-thirds attended only part-time.9 2

The future of training programs and the establishment and recognition of educational requirements and 

other occupational credentials, all have implications for 

the supply of library attendants and assistants. An 

analysis of supply cannot be developed, however, until 

more definitive data are available on sources of occupational supply and patterns of entry into the occupation.

9 2 Council on Library Technology. 1971 Directory o f Institutions Offering or Planning Programs for the Training of

Library Technical Assistants, p. 2.

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Chapter 4. Outlook and Implications

New graduates and others

To meet the projected demand for 168,000 librarians 

between 1970 and 1985—47,000 for growth and 

121,000 for replacement—the number of persons entering the profession must average 11,200 a year. Projecting 

entrance of new graduates on the basis of past trends, an 

estimated 80 percent of new bachelor’s and master’s 

library science degree recipients may be expected to 

enter the labor force as librarians. For the 1970-85 

period, this is an annual average of 9,000 new graduates 

entering the occupation. The balance of job openings 

will have to be filled from other sources of supply. Thus, 

2,200 openings annually are expected to be available to 

persons seeking reentry, delayed entry, and transfer into 

the occupation.

Table 20 highlights the supply-demand situation for 

librarians. Over the 1960-70 period, an estimated annual 

average of 8,900 openings arose due to growth and 

replacement needs. New graduates were available to fill 

only about 40 percent of these openings. This implies 

that an estimated 5,300 openings were filled by persons 

other than new graduates.

A turnaround in this situation is projected over the 

1970-85 period. New graduates will be available to fill an 

estimated 80 percent of total openings, and the number 

of jobs open to potential delayed entrants, reentrants, 

and occupational transfers is anticipated to be sharply 

curtailed. The projected 2,200 annual openings available 

to persons from these three supply sources is only about 

two-fifths of the number of annual openings estimated 

to have been filled from them during the 1960’s.

For new college graduates seeking jobs as librarians, 

supply and demand are expected to be approximately in 

balance. For the 1970-85 period, the estimated annual 

average number of job openings resulting from growth 

and replacement needs is exactly equal to the projected 

annual average number of bachelor’s and master’s 

degrees to be awarded over the 15-year period. However, 

since all degree recipients are not a part of the effective 

supply, overall demand will exceed the supply of new 

graduates.

The outlook for delayed entrants, reentrants, and 

occupational transfers is expected to be less favorable,

w it h th e p r o s p e c t o f m u c h m o r e c o m p e t it io n a m o n g

jobseekers than in the past. This situation arises primarily from the fact that the supply of new college 

graduates will be able to meet demand much more 

adequately than over the past decade. Less market 

pressure will be exerted to draw people from other 

sources of supply into the profession. In addition, new 

graduates seeking jobs are likely to have certain market 

advantages. They have up-to-date training and generally 

command lower entry-level salaries. For reentrants and 

delayed entrants, especially women with family responsibilities, lack of mobility may be an obstacle to occupational entry. To the extent that experience is a prime 

factor influencing hiring in libraries, however, reentrants 

and occupational transfers are likely to have a competitive edge over the new college graduate.

In certain locations or in certain types of libraries, 

some variation from the overall supply-demand projections may occur. Labor market costs and imperfections, 

including geographic immobility and lack of knowledge 

of job opportunities open to librarians seeking labor 

force entry—either as new graduates or as reentrants, 

delayed entrants, or transfers—represent barriers to 

entry.

Actually, the so-called “turnaround” in the supplydemand situation for librarians represents an alignment 

with the general labor market situation. The librarian 

shortage in the sixties created a situation which facilitated tremendous movement of delayed entrants, reentrants, and occupational transfers into the occupation. 

The anticipated tightening of the labor market will 

create an increasingly competitive situation for persons 

in these categories. It is expected that through the 

mid-1980’s, about 1 out of every 5 librarian jobs will be 

filled from sources other than the pool of new degree 

recipients. This is much more in line with the overall 

situation for the college trained labor force than the 

60-percent rate of the 1960-70 period. The Bureau of 

Labor Statistics projects that overall during the 1972-85 

period, for jobs requiring a college degree, 1 entrant out 

of every 7 will be someone other than a new college 

graduate.

Prospects for the future of librarianship can be 

discerned by considering the BLS labor force projections

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Table 20. Supply-demand situation for librarians, 1960-70 and projected 1970-80, and 1980-85

(A nnual averages)

Period

Openings

Bachelor's and

master's degrees

awarded in

library science

Estimated

entry of

new

graduates2

Implied number of openings

filled by delayed entrants,

reentrants, and net occupaTotal Growth Replacement1 tional transfers

1960-70 .......................... 8,900 4,600 4,300 4,500 3,600 5,300

B A S IC

1970-80 .......................... 10,000 2,600 7,400 10,300 8,200 1,800

1970-85 .......................... 11,200 3,100 8,100 11,200 9,000 2,200

1980-85 .......................... 13,100 4,200 8,900 13,200 10,600 2,500

A L T E R N A T IV E - L O W

1970-80 .......................... 8,900 1,700 7,200 10,300 8,200 700

1970-85 .......................... 9,900 2,200 7,700 11,200 9,000 900

1980-85 .......................... 11,400 3,200 8,200 13,200 10,600 800

1 Deaths, retirem ents, and other labor force separations. (E x ­

cludes transfers to other occupations.)

2 Assumed 8 0 percent en try rate.

and the outlook for college graduates generally. Overall, 

it is expected that educational requirements for many 

jobs will rise and there will be an upgrading in the 

educational attainment level of the labor force. Twice as 

many college degrees are projected to be awarded 

between 1972-85 as over the previous 13-year period, 

1959-72, and the supply of college graduates in the 

Nation’s labor force is projected to increase over 2Vi

times the rate of increase in the labor force as a whole. 

As a result of the greater number of college graduates, 

the tendency for employers to hire persons with the 

highest educational qualifications, and of course, the 

educational upgrading necessitated by the changing 

nature or content of existing jobs, job entry requirements may be expected to rise.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that nearly a 

quarter of the 1972-85 job openings will require persons 

with 4 years or more of college; this compares with an 

estimated 18 percent filled by college graduates in 

1959-72. While some of this increase is attributable to 

the fact that professional and technical employment 

growth will be faster than growth in all other major 

occupational groups, some of it is not; about one out of 

five jobs open to college graduates through the mid1980’s is expected to result from educational upgrading 

in occupations in which workers formerly were employed with less education.

As the labor market for librarians tightens, the 

emphasis on educational qualifications is likely to 

increase. Of the library science degrees conferred in 

1970-71, about 7 out of 8 were at the master’s level, and 

although only about one-third of all library science 

programs in institutions of higher education were accredited by the American Library Association, the ALA-accredited programs conferred four-fifths of all master’s

degrees. About 70 percent of total bachelor’s and 

master’s degrees conferred were master’s degrees 

awarded by ALA-accredited programs. As competition 

for jobs becomes stiffer and as new graduates seek to 

enhance their labor market potential, the tendency for 

students to enroll in accredited programs at the master’s 

level is likely to increase. Library educators have begun 

to voice concern, however, about a possible shift in the 

number of openings in accredited programs. The likelihood of future curtailment in enrollments in accredited 

library science programs, coupled with continued growth 

in nonaccredited programs, is discussed in the section on 

Training Programs.

Since the outlook for new college graduates in 

librarianship is only one piece of the overall outlook 

picture for college graduates, it is valuable to consider 

how they fit together. Two points of variation may be 

noted. First, the extent to which supply and demand are 

projected to be in balance is somewhat different, and 

second, the projected requirements arising from growth 

and replacement needs vary as well.

For college graduates overall, a rough balance of 

supply and demand is projected for 1972-80, but for 

1980-85 the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that 

supply may exceed requirements. This prospective gap in 

the later period is anticipated to stem not from an 

increase in supply but a marked leveling off of demand. 

Although the number of degrees awarded over the 

1980-85 period will increase less—both absolutely and 

relatively—than in 1972—80, this slowdown will not be 

sufficient to compensate for the projected slowdown in 

the rate of growth in the economy during the 1980-85 

period.

Labor force growth generates growth in the economy. 

During the 1960’s the number of births in the United

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States declined; consequently, the number of labor force 

entrants during the projection period will taper off 

toward the end of the 1970’s. This follows upon the 

swelling impact that the postwar baby boom’s entry into 

the labor force effected in the previous decade. A 

dampened demand for goods and services and sharp 

slowdown of economic growth thus is anticipated. For 

college graduates, the result is a market for highly 

trained workers which may not be able to absorb all 

potential entrants into jobs commensurate with their 

training, a situation which may create problems of 

underemployment, job dissatisfaction, and increasing 

occupational mobility. In addition, the availability of 

more college graduates is likely to affect adversely 

persons with less education both in terms of job entry 

and advancement.

For college graduates entering the labor force as 

librarians, a balance of supply and demand for the 

1970-85 period is projected. While the slowdown in 

economic growth which is expected to cause the 

deterioration of the situation for college graduates as a 

whole will have some effect on occupational needs, the 

primary demand factors for librarians suggest that 

requirements will be sufficient to absorb the influx of 

new workers. One of the projected outcomes of the 

economic slowdown is a slackening in the growth of 

government revenues and increased budget pressures in 

the government sector. Although slower growth in the 

labor force and slower growth in economic activity will 

dampen demand for government functions overall, the 

various levels of government may have to evaluate and 

reestablish their priorities. Because school enrollment 

projections indicate a rise in enrollments from 1980-85, 

increased priority is apt to be given to the education 

function of government. Similarly, public libraries are 

likely to continue receiving support as requirements of a 

growing population and an increasingly well-educated 

population continue to be served. The moderation of the 

overall demand for college graduates which is influenced 

by the moderation of economic growth thus is expected 

to have a less adverse effect on librarians than on new 

college graduates in various other fields.

The overall outlook for college graduates and the 

outlook for those entering librarianship differ on another point—the projections of requirements for growth and 

replacement. Replacement needs for librarians are expected to be higher than those for college-educated workers 

overall. Nearly three-fourths of the anticipated openings 

for librarians over the 1970-85 period will stem from the 

need to replace workers who die, retire, or leave the 

labor force. For the labor force as a whole, net 

occupational openings for 1972-85 due to replacement 

needs are projected to be double those for growth needs.

And in the case of college graduates, 1 out of 5 of 

the 14.5 million college graduates who will be needed to 

fill job openings over the 1972-85 period will find a job 

created by educational upgrading. Of the remainder, 

about two-fifths will be needed to meet growth requirements in occupations currently requiring a college degree 

and nearly three-fifths to meet replacement needs.

Training programs

Librarians. The anticipated adequate supply of potential 

jobseekers in the 1970-85 period has several implications 

for programs of library education. Experience in other 

occupations suggests that in the search for jobs, new 

library school graduates are likely to have a competitive 

advantage over experienced librarians seeking to reenter 

the labor force. If this holds true for librarianship over 

the projected period, nearly all newly graduated librarians are likely to succeed in finding jobs. Competition, 

however, is likely to be in store for many, if not most, 

reentrants. The data suggest strongly that a great number 

of graduate librarians who interrupt their careers in the 

1970’s or early 1980’s will experience difficulty in 

returning to the profession.

Library schools are in a better position to adjust to 

the changing job market than are many other professional schools, those requiring a longer period of formal 

education. Because the master’s program in librarianship 

may be completed in only 1 year of full-time study, 

library schools can make a fairly rapid adjustment to the 

market.

Library schools concerned about the career satisfaction of past as well as current graduates may opt to 

curtail expansion. Some schools already have done so. 

However, this decision requires additional information 

on the employment experience of library school graduates. The schools themselves are in the best position to 

monitor new graduates’ placement experience, and to 

keep track of former graduates who leave the profession 

for a period of time and then seek to reenter. Both 

situations should be watched closely, and taken into 

consideration when decisions are made as to maintaining, expanding, or curtailing enrollments.

There were clear signs, in 1973 and 1974, that a 

number of ALA-accredited programs in library science 

plan to limit enrollment growth in the immediate future. 

More than half of the accredited schools responding to a 

January 1974 survey expect either to hold the line or to 

curtail enrollment in master’s degree programs through 

the 1977-78 academic year.93 About an equal number

9 3Survey o f Library and Information Science Education

Programs 1971-73 (Bloomington, Ind., Indiana University

Graduate Library School, Jan. 18,1974, mimeographed).

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of accredited schools anticipate moderate growth in 

their master’s degree programs; very few anticipate 

substantial growth at the master’s level. At the postmaster’s and doctoral levels, strong growth is foreseen by 

the accredited schools. Data are less complete for the 

nonaccredited programs. However, responses to the 

1974 survey suggest that enrollment will rise much more 

rapidly in nonaccredited programs than in accredited 

ones over the next few years. This prospect has given rise 

to concern on the part of some educators, who fear that 

the growing proportion of graduates trained in nonaccredited programs will have an adverse effect on the 

profession.

Library schools may choose to reexamine their 

curriculums from the viewpoint of the principal growth 

areas for librarians through 1985—school librarianship, 

media-audiovisual technology, library administration, 

library automation, and community outreach librarianship. Library schools which traditionally have placed a 

large number of their graduates in academic and research 

libraries, for example, may opt to place greater stress on 

preparation for other areas of librarianship, where future 

employment growth is expected to be somewhat 

stronger.

Library attendants and assistants. The various programs 

for training library technicians or library technical 

assistants also bear watching. Although employment of 

attendants and assistants is expected to grow more 

rapidly than that of librarians in the 1970-85 period, 

national projections of employment growth do not in 

themselves justify expansion of local programs.

The BLS survey revealed that relatively few persons 

employed as library technicians are graduates of the 1 to 

2 year programs usually offered at the community 

college level. Instead, these programs appear to function 

chiefly as a source of supplementary training for library 

technicians and library clerks already employed in a 

nearby library. Compared to the number enrolled, 

relatively few library technology students complete the 

degree program—inasmuch as the degree almost never is 

a job prerequisite. Although many of the libraries 

surveyed by BLS regard library technology programs as 

“useful,” virtually none regard them as “essential.” 

Therefore, schools with library technology programs 

may want to examine closely the local employment 

situation for potential students and graduates before 

instituting or expanding programs.

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Appendix A. Coverage, Definitions, Data Sources, and Projection

Methods

Coverage and definitions

The subject of this bulletin is manpower in two major 

library occupations: Librarians, and library attendants 

and assistants. Not included in the scope of the study are 

persons who, though employed in libraries, work at jobs 

which are not specifically library-related. The professional group which is excluded is fairly small, and is 

made up of specialists in such areas as personnel and 

employee relations, budget and finance, public relations, 

systems analysis, and language or subject areas. Also 

excluded are two considerably larger groups of workers 

in nonprofessional jobs: Clerical workers, including 

secretaries, typists, and clerks; and maintenance staff, 

including guards, drivers, building engineers, custodians, 

and groundskeepers.

The distinction between “library-related” and “nonlibrary related” occupations is not always clear cut. In 

many small libraries, librarians or their assistants handle 

maintenance, clerical, and/or administrative tasks in 

addition to their principal duties.

Also excluded from the scope of the study are 

persons trained in library science but not employed in 

libraries. This diverse group includes persons in a number 

of occupations closely involved with librarianship: 

Library educators (who, as educators, are classified with 

all other college and university teachers), library consultants, library and book trade writers and editors, library 

association staff members, and government officials and 

administrators.

The definition of “librarian” used in this report is 

generally consistent with the Census definition. It was 

adhered to as closely as possible in developing estimates 

of current and projected 1980 and 1985 employment. 

During the interview phase of the study, the definitions 

shown in appendix C were used to elicit information on 

the nature of the work performed by library personnel 

in libraries of different kinds and sizes. The BLS 

definition of “librarian” aimed to distinguish professional from nonprofessional personnel on the basis of 

duties performed, rather than on the basis of educational 

background. In this respect it differs from the approach 

adopted by the American Library Association in its

1970 statement on library education and manpower. 

The ALA approach establishes educational prerequisites 

for each of five levels of library occupations.

The definition of “library attendant and assistant” 

used in this report is the standard occupational classification used by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. It is a broad 

category comprised of nonprofessional library personnel 

with many different job titles. The census definition was 

used because of the absence of alternative data sources 

for nonprofessional library personnel. It had been hoped 

that employment data could be developed separately for 

several nonprofessional library occupations, but this was 

not feasible. All nonprofessional library workers accordingly are treated as a single category throughout the 

report. The definitions of technical assistant and clerk 

shown in appendix C were used during the interview 

phase of the study as part of the effort to distinguish 

library technical assistants (library technicians) from 

other library nonprofessionals. This effort was not 

successful. The plan to develop firm employment estimates for library technical assistants accordingly was 

abandoned, and only qualitative information on this 

occupation is presented in the report.

During the 1970 Census of Population, persons were 

counted as library attendants and assistants if they 

reported any of the following jobs:

Accessioner—U.S. Library of Congress 

Assistant 

Librarian’s 

Medical library

Attendant, not specified (if employed in a library) 

Book shelver 

Book sorter

Clerk, not specified (if employed in a library)

Computer tape librarian

Filing books

Film-library clerk

Helper

Librarian’s

Not specified (if employed in a library) 

Librarian, not specified (if employed in a department store or mail order establishment)

Library aide 

Library clerk 

Library monitor 

Library page

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Shelving books

Stack attendant

Stacking books

Tape librarian

The standard census definition of library attendant 

and assistant was revised slightly for the 1970 Census of 

Population, with the result that 1960 and 1970 census 

data for this occupation (and for many other occupations and industries) are not comparable without an 

adjustment to compensate for the change in definition. 

The adjustment procedure is explained in U.S. Bureau of 

the Census, 1970 Occupational and Industry Classification Systems in terms o f their 1960 Occupation and

Industry Elements, by John A. Priebe, Joan Heinkel, and 

Stanley Greene, Technical Paper No. 26, (Washington,

D.C., 1972). For adjustment purposes, a sample of 1960 

census returns was recoded according to the 1970 

definitions of occupation and industry. Reclassification 

of the 1960 data on library attendants and assistants 

resulted in a 13 percent increase in this category—from 

an actual 1960 census figure of 32,872 to an adjusted 

1960 census figure of 37,000. The adjustment was about 

equally divided between 2,100 persons previously classified as messengers and office boys, and 2,200 persons 

previously classified as clerical and kindred workers, not 

elsewhere classified.

Methods

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 employment. Historical and 

current data on employment in library occupations are 

available from a variety of sources, of which the most 

important are the Office of Education and the Bureau of 

the Census. Coverage is not complete however, and the 

various sources are not readily compatible because of 

conceptual differences and use of different reference 

periods. The estimates of 1960 and 1970 librarian 

employment found in this report represent an effort to 

use the most reliable data from several sources, and to 

reconcile differences between them. The most important 

considerations in selecting particular data sources were

(1) the relative accuracy of various employment series, 

and (2) the availability of consistent historical trend 

series.

Estimates of total library employment in 1960 and 

1970 were derived by aggregating separate estimates 

made for each of four types of libraries—school, public, 

academic, and special. The initial estimates were compared with decennial census data on the distribution of 

employed persons by occupation and industry, and with 

the BLS industry-occupational matrix. (The matrix is 

explained later in this appendix.) Adjustments were

made as necessary to ensure consistency between totals 

and subtotals.

The BLS estimates (and most census data as well) 

pertain to full-time plus part-time employment. This is 

in contrast to the usual practice of the Office of 

Education, which reports employment data in terms of 

full-time equivalents (FTE)—that is, full-time personnel 

plus “full-time equivalent” of part-time personnel. As a 

rule, full-time plus part-time employment is higher than 

FTE employment. Fall 1969 data on academic librarians, for example, show a total of 17,695 FTE librarians, 

compared to an estimated total of 19,051 full-time plus 

part-time librarians (17,017 full-time plus 2,034 parttime). The procedures used by BLS to convert FTE to 

full-time plus part-time employment are described 

below.

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 school librarian employment are based on data from Office of Education 

surveys of public school personnel. For most years 

between 1960 and 1970, data are available on the 

number of public school librarians as reported in 1 of 2 

surveys: The biennial survey of State school systems and 

the annual survey of local public school systems. For 

some years, data are available from both surveys. State 

school system data are available for 1961-70; local 

public school system data are available for Fall 1967-70. 

Each of these periodic surveys provides consistent 

time-series data on employment of public school staff 

members including librarians, expressed in full-time 

equivalents. (The local public school system survey also 

reports employment of audiovisual specialists and library 

aides). In addition, three surveys devoted exclusively to 

pub he school library resources and personnel were 

conducted in the 1960-70 period, and two of them 

provide benchmark data. Most important of all is a 

comprehensive 1960-61 survey which furnishes basic 

data on school library resources, services, and staff in all 

public school districts and additional detail for districts 

enrolling 150 pupils or more. This was followed in 

1961-62 by a “postcard” survey which furnishes limited 

data for districts enrolling 150 pupils or more.

Data on the number of librarians in nonpublic schools 

are not available. (Two surveys of nonpub He schools 

were conducted by the Office of Education between 

1960 and 1970, but they do not provide information on 

library staff.) Estimates of the number of nonpublic 

school librarians therefore were derived by applying the 

public school librarian-pupil ratio to nonpublic school 

enrollment figures.

Based on (1) actual survey results from the Office of 

Education’s 1960-61 public school library survey and 

from its Fall 1970 local public school system survey, and

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(2) estimated data for nonpublic schools, the following 

estimates were derived by BLS of the number of 

full-time equivalent school librarians:

1960 1970

Total .... 28,000 48,000

Public School . .. 25,000 43,000

Nonpublic School 3,000 5,000

These estimates of FTE employment then were 

converted to estimates of full-time and part-time employment by applying the following formula:

FT + PT = 1.10 FTE

This formula represents the relationship between FTE 

and full-time and part-time employment in 368 school 

libraries in the State of Wisconsin, according to unpublished data from the Office of Education’s 1972-73 

Library General Information Survey. The weakness of 

this method lies in the reliance on data from one State 

to represent all 50 States. It is, nonetheless, the best 

information currently available on employment of 

school librarians in full-time, part-time, and FTE units.

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 public librarian employment are based on data from the Bureau of the Census’ 

annual sample survey of State and local governments and 

from its quinquennial Census of Governments. The 

annual survey provides data for every year since 1961 on 

expenditures and staff of “local libraries”—that is, 

libraries operated by local governments.1 The definition 

of “local libraries” used by the Census Bureau in its 

government surveys comes reasonably close to the 

generally-accepted definition of “public libraries.”1 2 It 

should be noted that the Census Bureau figures on local 

libraries do not include libraries operated by State 

governments (State library agencies, State law libraries, 

State institutional libraries, and so forth). The quinquennial survey provides comparable data on local 

libraries for 1967, 1962, and 1957. Data for 1960 are 

BLS estimates, obtained by interpolating annual figures 

for 1958-60.

Employment data for local libraries which appear in 

these annual and quinquennial reports pertain to total 

library staff; data are not published separately for 

librarians, library attendants and assistants, maintenance 

or other personnel. The employment data are presented

1 Results of the annual survey are published every year. See,

for example, U.S. Bureau of the Census, Public Employment in

1970, Series GE70-No. 1 (Washington, D.C., 1971).

2 See, for example, the definition agreed to by members of

the ALA Statistics Coordinating Project which appears on pp.

30-31 of Library Statistics: A Handbook o f Concepts, Definitions, and Terminology (Chicago, American Library Association,

1966).

in full-time and part-time terms as well as in full-time 

equivalents. This makes it unnecessary to apply an FTE 

conversion factor to the survey data on public library 

staff.

Data from a number of public library surveys, among 

them Office of Education surveys conducted in 1962, 

1965, and 1968, suggest that librarians comprised about 

one-third of total public library staff in 1960 and 1970. 

These estimates are supported by 1970 census results 

and the BLS industry-occupational matrix, both of 

which provide information on staffing patterns in public 

libraries.

The 1962 survey conducted by the Office of Education covers all public libraries in the United States; 

subsequent surveys have covered only the ‘large” public 

libraries which serve 25,000 persons or more. Staffing 

patterns vary between the “large” and “small” libraries, 

with large libraries reporting fewer librarians, relative to 

total staff, than small libraries. To some extent, this 

reflects actual differences in staffing patterns. The larger 

the library, the greater the opportunity for specialization 

in job assignments, and for extensive use of nonprofessionals. Some of the difference in staffing patterns is 

only apparent, however, for there exists in practice some 

lack of agreement as to the dividing line between 

“professional” and “nonprofessional” library occupations. This is especially a problem in very small libraries, 

where the entire staff may be regarded as “librarians.”

In those public libraries serving populations of 25,000 

or more, the percent of all staff members (including 

maintenance) who are librarians was, on average, as 

follows:

1962 ...................................................................................................30.5

1965 .................... 28.1

1968 ................................................................................................... 27.4

However, when small libraries as well as large ones were 

surveyed, the percent of librarians on the staff was 

appreciably higher—35.4 percent in 1962. For 1960 and 

1970, BLS estimated this figure to be 33 percent. The 

1980 and 1985 projections assume a substantial drop, to 

23 percent in 1985.

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 academic librarian

employment are based on data from the Office of

Education’s annual college and university library survey. 

Results of this annual survey of the entire higher 

education universe are regarded as highly reliable, and 

provide particularly valuable trend data. Data on resources, expenditures, and staff in each of the Nation’s

2,500 or so academic libraries are published annually, in 

a report of institutional data. An analytic report

published every other year presents aggregate data for 

the entire academic library universe. Analytic reports 

used in preparing this study are those for 1959-60,

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1961-62, 1963-64; and Fall 1968,1969, and 1971. Data 

for 1960 and 1970 were interpolated from actual figures 

for earlier and later years.

Adjustments were made in the survey data. First, 

survey results for 1959-60, 1961-62, and 1963-64 were 

adjusted to ensure consistency over time in two employment series: Professionals other than librarians, and 

nonprofessionals. Until the 1967-68 survey, no distinction had been made between these two occupational 

categories, and as a result, professionals other than

librarians were incorrectly classed as nonprofessionals.3 

It should be noted that the adjustment procedure does 

not alter the survey data for librarians.

The second adjustment was necessary in order to 

convert FTE employment data to full-time plus parttime employment. The following formulas, based on 

actual data from the Office of Education’s 1969 college 

and university library survey, were used to convert FTE 

to full-time plus part-time figures:

(1) FT + PT

L

— .962 FTE + 3 (FTE - .962 FTE )

L L

(2) FT + PT

POL

= .875 FTE + 3 (FTE - .875 FTE )

POL POL POL

(3) FT + PT

N

= .887 FTE + 3 (FTE - .887 FTE )

N N N

Where

FT + PT = full-time and part-time em ploym ent

FTE full-time equivalent em ploym ent (all

full-time plus full-tim e equivalent

o f part-time)

L = librarians

POL = professionals other than librarians

N = nonprofessionals

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 special librarian employment were developed wholly within the framework of 

the BLS industry-occupational matrix. The procedure by 

which information on the level and composition of 

demand for the economy’s goods and services is translated, first, into requirements for workers by industry 

and then into requirements for workers by occupation is 

explained in greater detail later in this appendix.

The BLS industry-occupational matrix was used to 

derive employment estimates for special librarians because other sources of statistical data on special librarians are too fragmentary to form the basis for an 

industrywide estimate. Few attempts have ever been 

made to survey all special libraries in the United States, 

chiefly because of the difficulties involved in developing a comprehensive and up-to-date universe. Foremost 

among those concerned with a listing of U.S. special 

libraries is Anthony T. Kruzas, whose publications include several editions of Directory o f Special Libraries

and Information Centers (Detroit, Gale Research Company, 1968) and also Encyclopedia o f Information

Systems and Sources (Ann Arbor, Edwards Brothers, 

1971).

The very diversity of special libraries militates against 

a universe survey by the libraries themselves; music

libraries, for e^aihple, have little in common with 

scientific and engineering libraries. The existence of a 

number of professional associations uniting special librarians in various fields—medicine, law, theology, 

theater, and so forth—attests to the essential plurality of 

the industry. It is not surprising, therefore, that the most 

important surveys in the special library field are association-sponsored and confined to a single speciality. 

Notable examples are the 1969 health sciences library 

survey and various investigations which accompanied it; 

several recent surveys of law libraries; and the 1972 

survey of some 2,600 Federal libraries.

The 1969 survey of medical and health sciences 

libraries was conducted under the auspices of the 

American Medical Association, the American Hospital 

Association, and the Medical Library Association, with 

financial support from the National Library of Medicine. 

A total of 3,155 health sciences libraries were identified 

in the initial phase of the survey, and these are listed in 

Frank Schick and Susan Crawford, Directory o f Health

Sciences Libraries, 1969 (Chicago, American Medical 

Association, 1971). These libraries employed a total

3Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities, Analytic

Report, Fall 1968 (Washington, D.C., 1970), p. 13.

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full-time and part-time staff of 14,938 persons in 1969, 

of whom 5,861 were in hospital libraries and 9,077 were 

in medical school libraries, medical society libraries, and 

other nonhospital health sciences libraries. Of the total 

staff, 6,052 persons were categorized as “professional” 

and 8,886 as “nonprofessional.” Additional information 

on this survey, its methods and results, may be found in 

(1) Susan Crawford, “Health Sciences Libraries in the 

United States: Survey and Statistical Profile,” The

Bowker Annual o f Library and Book Trade Information, 

New York, R.R. Bowker Company, 1972, (2) Susan 

Criwford, ed., “Health Sciences libraries in the United 

States: A Statistical Profile,” Bulletin o f the Medical

Library Association, Vol. 60, No. 2, Supplement, April 

1972, and (3) David Kronick, Alan M. Rees, and Lesliebeth Rothenberg, “An Investigation of the Educational 

Needs of Health Sciences Library Manpower,” Parts I, II, 

III, IV, and V, Bulletin o f the Medical Library Associationi, Vol. 58, No. 1, January 1970, Vol. 58, No. 4, 

October 1970, Vol. 59, No. 1, January 1971, and Vol. 

59, No. 3, July 1971.

Law libraries have not undergone a single, exhaustive 

survey comparable to the 1969 health sciences library 

survey. Instead, efforts are underway to conduct continuing surveys of a few major indicators of law library 

operations. Surveys of law school libraries were started 

in 1969 under the auspices of the American Association 

of Law Libraries and the American Bar Association and 

have been conducted annually since that time; results are 

published every year in the May issue of Law Library

Journal. In 1970, for example, some 146 law school 

libraries (of a total of more than 800 law libraries of all 

types—law school, local bar, law firm, government, and 

other) reported 503 professionals, 596 full-time nonprofessionals, and 1,270 part-time nonprofessionals. The 

mean staff size in 145 schools was 3.4 professionals, 4.1 

full-time nonprofessionals, and 5.9 part-time nonprofessionals. The first of a continuing series of surveys of 

local bar libraries was conducted in 1971, and surveys of 

law firm libraries and government law libraries are 

planned. Two surveys of law librarians’ salaries have 

been conducted since 1970 by Professor Carlyle Frarey 

of Columbia University, the results having appeared in 

the Law Library Journal

The 1972 Federal library survey represents the first 

attempt to conduct an exhaustive survey of all the 2,600 

or so libraries which serve the Federal Government. 

Sponsored by the Federal Library Committee and 

funded by the Office of Education, the fiscal year 1972 

survey aimed at comprehensive coverage, including some 

Federal libraries which are not special libraries: School 

libraries for dependents overseas, for example, and the 

quasi-public and quasi-academic libraries run by the

Department of Defense. Respondents to the survey 

employed 11,143 full-time staff members, of whom 29 

percent were librarians. One o f every 3 Federal 

librarians worked in a National library—the Library of 

Congress, the National Agricultural Library, or the 

National Library of Medicine.

Estimates o f 1960 and 1970 library attendant and

assistant employment are based on actual and adjusted 

Census data. The 1960 estimate of 37,000 full-time and 

part-time library attendants and assistants is adjusted 

upward from the actual 1960 figure of nearly 33,000. 

Both the need for this adjustment and the procedure 

used in making it are described in an earlier part of this 

appendix.

No estimates are presented in this report of the 1960 

distribution of attendants and assistants by type of 

library. This reflects the paucity of data upon which to 

base an estimate. Census industry classifications used in 

1960 were broader than those used in 1970, and 1960 

data for three crucial components of the educational 

services industry—elementary and secondary schools, 

colleges and universities, and (public) libraries—were not 

presented separately. Instead, these three industries, 

together with a miscellany of other educational institutions, were presented as a single category. The 1970 

introduction of a considerably more detailed classification system (the 1970 census presents data for 227 

industries and 441 occupations, compared to 150 

industries and 297 occupations in the 1960 census)

made it possible for the first time, to develop employment estimates for attendant and assistants by type of 

library. The match is not an exact one, but is believed to 

be reasonably close. 1970 census industry codes and the 

type of library to which each corresponds are as follows:

857 (K) Elementary and secondary

s c h o o ls ............................................School libraries

858 Colleges and universities ......................... Academ ic libraries

859 Libraries ............................ Public libraries

Residual group comprised of the other

224 industries ............................... Special libraries

For more detail on the census classification systems, see 

U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1970 Census of Population, 

Classified Index o f Industries and Occupations (Washington, D.C., 1971).

Data from the 1970 census on the distribution of 

employed library attendants and assistants in the three 

relevant industries (elementary and secondary schools, 

colleges and universities, and libraries) plus the residual 

category (all other industries, summed) were used for 

the BLS estimates for 1970 employment of attendants 

and assistants by type of library.

Estimates o f the demographic characteristics o f librarians and library attendants and assistants are based on

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1970 census data. Census sex ratios were applied to BLS 

estimates of employment of librarians by type of library 

in a two-step process. First, using census data, percents 

were calculated for the distribution of librarians by sex, 

age group, and race in each of three industries: Elementary and secondary schools (857-K), libraries (859), and 

colleges and universities (858), and for all other industries, summed. (The residual group was considered to 

approximate the special libraries industry.) These census 

ratios were then applied to the independently-derived 

BLS estimates for school librarians, public librarians, 

academic librarians, and special librarians, respectively. 

For library attendants and assistants, actual census data 

on sex, age, and race were used.

Projections of 1980 and 1985 requirements

The method for projecting library manpower requirements to 1980 and 1985 used in this study is consistent 

with techniques used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics 

in other studies of future occupational manpower needs. 

The procedure is summarized briefly in the section that 

follows. Additional detail on the variety of techniques 

used by the Bureau to develop estimates and projections 

of requirements for workers by industry and occupation 

appears in chapters 5, 7, and 31 of BLS Bulletin 1711, 

BLS Handbook o f Methods. The sequence of projection 

procedures is also described in appendix A of BLS 

Bulletin 1737, Tomorrow’s Manpower Needs: Volume 

IV, The National Industry-Occupational Matrix and

Other Manpower Data.

Framework for developing projections. The Bureau of 

Labor Statistics has prepared national industry and 

occupational manpower projections since the 1950’s. 

The latest set of projections revises previously published 

projections to 1980 and extends the estimates to 1985.4 

The projections are based on an extensive and interrelated program of studies conducted by the Bureau on 

economic growth, technological change, and industrial 

and occupational trends. The 1980 and 1985 projections 

encompass a number of integrated components. Specifically, they cover labor force; hours of work; output per 

man-hour; gross national product (GNP) and the composition of demand; output and productivity by detailed 

industry group; and industrial and occupational employment requirements. The projections are interrelated: The 

growth of GNP, a foundation of the projections, is 

conditioned upon assumptions concerning labor supply, 

productivity changes, and hours of work. The rate and

4The revised 1980 and new 1985 projections are summarized

in The U.S. Economy in 1985 (BLS Bulletin 1809, 1974).

direction of changes in the major demand components 

of GNP, in turn, yield changing requirements for labor 

by industry and occupation.

By 1985, according to the BLS projections, the U.S. 

labor force will reach 108 million; the number of 

persons employed, 103 million (both totals include 

military); and gross national product, about $1.9 trillion 

(1972 dollars). These estimates reflect a number of 

implicit as well as explicit assumptions, and in particular 

a key assumption that basic economic factors will not 

veer from long-term paths. Despite the assumption of 

continuation of underlying forces, however, demographic changes already underway presage changes in the 

rate of economic growth and the supply of trained 

manpower. In two significant departures from past 

trends, the latest BLS projections suggest (1) a sharp 

slowdown in overall economic growth and (2) a potential oversupply of college graduates, both to begin in the 

late 1970’s. The expected dampening in the rate of 

economic growth is almost entirely demographic, caused 

by the slowdown in births which will begin to show up 

in the smaller number of new entrants into the labor 

force toward the end of the 1970’s. The shift in the 

supply-demand situation for college graduates similarly 

reflects the combining of demographic factors. It should 

be emphasized that the projected dampening in the rate 

of growth is not due to an assumption regarding failure 

to achieve high levels of employment. On the contrary, 

the projections assume 96 percent of the civilian labor 

force employed in both 1980 and 1985.

Following are the general assumptions concerning the 

economy in 1980 and 1985 which underlie the Bureau’s 

projections:

Fiscal, monetary, and manpower training and educational programs will achieve a satisfactory balance 

between relatively low unemployment and relative 

price stability, permitting achievement of the longterm economic growth rate. The projections assume a 

4-percent unemployment rate (of the civilian labor 

force) and a 3-percent annual increase in the implicit 

price deflator for gross national product.

The institutional framework of the American economy will not change radically.

Economic, social, technological, and scientific trends 

will continue, including values placed on work, 

education, income, and leisure.

Efforts to solve major domestic problems such as 

those of air and water pollution, solid waste disposal, 

urban congestion, inadequate industrial safety, and 

energy shortages may consume more productive 

resources but will not have more than a marginal 

effect on long-term growth.

Projection methods. Development of the Bureau’s projections begins with the labor force. The labor force

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projection, based on the Bureau of the Census projections of population (Series E), is developed through 

separate projections of labor force participation for the 

various age, sex, and racial groups in the population. The 

detailed participation rates are then applied to the 

projected levels in each population group.

The economic growth projections, developed in consultation with the Interagency Committee on Economic 

Growth, cover gross national product and its distribution 

among the four major components (or demand categories) of GNP: Consumer expenditures, domestic investment, net foreign demand, and government expenditures-Federal, State, and local.

Industry and occupational employment projections—the end product of labor force and economic 

growth projections—are arrived at by using a combination of techniques. First, major demand components of 

GNP are converted into industry employment requirements. Total industry employment is obtained by 

calculations involving projected changes in demand, 

interindustry (input-output) relationships, and output 

and productivity. The employment projections are initially developed for about 135 industries or industry 

groups, covering the entire economy. The results of the 

inpdf-output employment projections are then checked 

and reconciled for consistency with an independent set 

of industry employment projections derived by regression techniques.

Finally, projected industry employment is converted 

into occupational needs. This step in the procedure 

requires the projection of detailed occupational patterns 

on an industry-by-industry basis. Each industry uses a 

unique combination of occupational skills, together with 

other factors of production, in its efforts to achieve least 

cost for its output. Occupational patterns may be 

markedly different from one industry to another. Over 

fairly short periods, the occupational structure of many 

industries is stable. Occupational patterns, however, 

change with the advance of technology and changes in 

the supply of workers. The Bureau accordingly has 

developed a technique for projecting occupational patterns which takes into account such information as is 

available on the effect of changing technology and shifts 

in labor supply.

Occupational patterns are projected by means of the 

BLS industry-occupational matrix—a matrix, or table, 

which divides total U.S. employment into occupations 

cross-classified by industries. At present, matrices are 

available for 1970, 1980, and 1985. The amount of 

industry and occupational detail has increased with 

successive matrices. In the latest matrix, industry-occupational data are set up in a table which shows 400 

specific occupations plus groups of occupations crossclassified with 200 industries.

To put it another way, the industry-occupational 

matrix is a set of ratios showing the occupational pattern 

of employment for each of 200 industries. Every 

industry in the matrix is represented by a column which 

adds to 100 percent, and shows the percent distribution 

of employment by detailed occupation in that industry. 

Thus there are 200 separate ratios for librarians, indicating the proportion of total employment which 

librarians comprise in each of the 200 matrix industries. 

Similarly, there are 200 ratios for library attendants and 

assistants. These ratios are developed for a base year 

primarily on the basis of decennial census data on 

employment by occupation and industry. The census 

data are refined and adjusted by BLS staff to take into 

account unallocated workers, seasonal employment factors, BLS industry employment estimates, and occupational estimates derived from in-depth studies and other 

sources considered preferable to Census data.

Projecting the ratios to a target year is a major step in 

the entire projection sequence. It is done by extrapolating past trends and, where possible, by analyzing 

the factors that influence occupational structure. 

Changes in the ratios are indicative of changing occupational patterns within an industry, a development which 

usually is associated with industry growth, technological 

changes, changes in business organization, shifts in 

manpower supply, job redesign, or any of a number of 

other factors.

In the next step, industry target year estimates 

developed in an earlier stage of the projection sequence 

are combined with projected occupational patterns. To 

derive future employment requirements for a given 

occupation, each of the 200 ratios is applied to the 

appropriate target year industry employment estimate. 

Total national requirements for the occupation then are 

obtained by summing across all industries.

Finally, these preliminary occupational projections 

are analyzed and adjusted on the basis of in-depth 

studies conducted in the course of the Bureau’s occupational outlook program. These studies, for selected 

industries and occupations, provide an analysis of the 

factors affecting demand for workers in a given occupation, and an assessment of the way these factors are 

likely to operate in the future. Technological change is 

the most often discussed factor affecting occupational 

employment, but occupational changes are influenced 

by a number of other factors as well. Their importance 

varies from one occupation to another. Occupational 

employment is influenced, for example, by growth in 

population and changes in age distribution; by government policy—which may, for example, generate massive 

expenditures for research and development, or for 

construction; by institutional factors, such as unionmanagement relationships and practices; and by the

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relative supply of workers in other occupations, as, for 

example, the substitution effect resulting from shortages 

of professionals and their replacement by paraprofessionals.

The growth of employment in library occupations is 

affected by a unique complex of factors—population 

growth; enrollment trends; changing patterns of library 

usage and new concepts of library service; government 

policy concerning Federal support for education in 

general and for libraries in particular; the advent of the 

computer as an aid to library operations; innovations in 

the area of interlibrary cooperation and accompanying 

shifts in organizational patterns and work procedures; 

and changes in staffing patterns stimulated in part by 

past manpower shortages.

All of these demand factors were taken into account 

in developing the final estimates of 1980 and 1985 

requirements for librarians and library attendants and 

assistants. That is, preliminary matrix ratios were evaluated in the light of specific assumptions about the 

various demand factors which influence employment in 

library occupations. Particular consideration was given 

to the effect of population trends upon employment in 

public libraries and the effect of enrollment trends upon 

employment in school libraries and in academic libraries. 

No single factor was identified as a critical determinant 

of employment in special libraries.

Comment on assumptions. BLS projections are not 

predictions. They are based on past trends and on an 

assessment of the likely future behavior of a number of 

economic, demographic, and social variables. To the 

extent that the assumptions upon which the BLS model 

is based are not realized, the employment levels and the 

industrial and occupational employment patterns projected for 1980 and 1985 may not be attained.

This caveat applies not only to the assumptions listed 

on page 57, but to several specific assumptions which 

were used in the supply-demand analysis for library 

personnel. On the supply side, to the extent that degrees 

awarded in library science between 1970 and 1985 

depart from the level currently projected by the Office 

of Education—there is a strong possibility that they will 

be lower—the number of new graduates seeking jobs as 

librarians is likely to be lower than that projected in this 

report. On the demand side, the BLS analysis of future 

requirements for library personnel relies in part on 

projections of population and enrollment. If, as seems 

increasingly likely, 1985 population and enrollment 

levels are lower than those assumed at the time this 

analysis was carried out, fewer librarians may be 

required.

To better explain the necessity for the caveat about 

the demographic and enrollment projections upon which

the analysis is partly based, consider recent trends in 

fertility rates. This factor not only underlies population 

projections and school enrollment projections but also is 

an important factor in female labor force participation. 

In the latest population projections developed by the 

Census Bureau,5 fertility assumptions have been revised 

downward to reflect the sharp decline in fertility which 

has been evidenced since 1970 as well as the sharp 

decline in the birth expectations of young wives during 

the past 5 years. The Census Bureau in its prior 

projections developed four population series assuming a 

range of four different fertility levels. Considering 

additional data now available, the “high” series of these 

earlier projections appears to imply an unrealistically 

high fertility rate. Thus, it has been dropped. In 

addition, a new low series has been developed. The basis 

for this lowest of four series is an arbitrary fertility level. 

There is no precedent in American demographic history 

on which to assign such a low level. However, its 

development reflects the unprecedented demographic 

developments: an all-time low fertility rate; a continuously declining birth rate; and an overall trend to smaller 

families. Over the past decade, the fertility decline has 

caused a dramatic shift from a three-child to a two-child 

family norm.

One implication of a continuing downward trend in 

fertility is that the number of children entering school 

may not, in fact, be as large as had been expected. The 

Bureau of Labor Statistics recently adopted a lower 

fertility assumption for use in developing its labor force 

projections, and new enrollment projections developed 

by the U.S. Office of Education will reflect a similar 

change. In preparing this report, estimates developed by 

the Office of Education and published in the 1972 

edition of Projections o f Educational Statistics were 

used, together with unpublished projections through 

1985 prepared for the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 

January 1973. Preliminary projections developed just 

prior to publication of this report indicate the likelihood 

of a downward revision of earlier figures. Enrollment 

estimates developed on the basis of the fertility assumption implicit in the earlier projections thus may prove to 

be too high. This possibility is particularly significant at 

the elementary school level, since 1985’s 12-year-olds 

and all those younger will be bom after 1972. The 

upturn in enrollments anticipated for the late 1970’s is 

not, in fact, ensured. Should declines in fertility continue to new lows, the demand projections for school 

librarians may prove to be overstated. Since a trend has 

not been firmly established, however, it would be

5Current Population Reports, Series P-25, No. 493, “Projections of the Population of the United States, by Age and Sex:

1972 to 2020,” (Bureau of the Census, 1972).

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premature to assume such a decline. That the decline is 

an outgrowth of new attitudes and economic conditions 

and may be expected to continue remains highly 

speculative.

Enrollment projections figure into the supply demand 

picture for librarians not only at the elementary school 

level but also in terms of higher education enrollments. 

While projections of enrollments at this level are not 

subject to the uncertainties of projecting population 

since the college-age population to 1985 already has 

been born, assumptions must be made concerning, first, 

what constitutes the potential college-age population 

and, secondly, what proportion of that population will 

be enrolled in institutions of higher education. The 

Nation’s 18- to 21-year-olds in the past have been 

considered the “conventional” college-age group; and 

the assumed enrollment levels have been determined in 

line with trends set during a period when the proportion 

of persons graduating from high school and the percent 

going on to college were increasing rapidly. No consideration was given to the possibility of declines in enrollment rates below then current levels. The most recent 

available data, however, indicate that a change in the 

assumptions may be necessary in order to develop 

realistic projections. School enrollment rates for persons 

18 to 24 years old just out of high school may be 

expected to decline somewhat since college enrollment 

apparently has been influenced by such factors as 

changing attitudes toward education, financial support 

for college students, the growth of community colleges, 

and changes in admission practices. In addition, there is 

some evidence that the draft laws which formerly 

allowed deferments for men enrolled in college created a 

situation in which enrollment rates may have been 

unusually high during the late 1960’s; consequently, 

enrollment projections may have been overstated. Such 

overstatement may be counterbalanced, however, by 

changing enrollment patterns. The school enrollment 

rates for persons over 25 years old have increased 

slightly between 1963 and 1972. Also, a recent survey 

revealed that 1.5 million adults age 35 years and over 

were enrolled in or attending school, and somewhat over 

one-half of them were enrolled in college.

Enrollment projections at the college and university 

level influence the outlook analysis for librarians both in

terms of the projected demand for librarians to serve the 

needs of future college and university students and also 

in terms of the future supply of new college graduates 

eligible for entry into the occupation. The Office of 

Education’s projections of enrollments and degrees 

awarded are being revised downward to reflect the 

recent enrollment changes. The Carnegie Commission on 

Higher Education has revised its enrollment projections 

to show smaller increases than had originally been 

projected. The National Education Association has 

surveyed the Nation’s largest teacher preparation institutions and found a potential enrollment decline which is 

attributed to student response to employment prospects 

in teaching. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, too, notes 

that the imbalance in the supply and demand for college 

graduates may not be as large as projected to the extent 

that college enrollments slow down as students become 

aware of the less favorable job market.

Female labor force participation patterns represents 

another factor which could have a significant impact on 

the potential supply situation in librarianship. As was 

noted in the discussion of Other Sources of Supply, 

information is lacking on patterns of occupational entry 

and delayed entry, but it is known that in an occupation 

which is largely female these supply components become 

increasingly important in the outlook analysis.

The influx of women workers into the labor force 

over the past decade has been dramatic. While the 

proportion of women workers in the labor force is 

expected to continue to rise, the assumed halt in the 

decline in women’s fertility rates and the fact that the 

increase in the women’s population over the projection 

period will be concentrated in the age group with a 

lower labor force participation rate will result in a much 

more moderate rate of increase. Should the decline in 

fertility rates persist, however, the proportion of women 

of childbearing age who have preschool age children to 

care for would decline and potentially more women 

could enter the work force. Similarly, socioeconomic or 

legislative changes could alter participation rates. For 

example, daycare provisions might facilitate entry of 

mothers into the labor force. While factors related to 

labor force participation of women affect the librarian 

occupation, to the extent that more men enter this 

traditionally female dominated occupation, the impact 

of these factors may be moderated.

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Appendix B. Sample Design

The survey phase of the Library Manpower Study 

consisted of personal visits to about 100 libraries and 

library systems to elicit information on staffing patterns, 

job functions, training needs, and current manpower 

problems in the library field as well as to identify the 

factors that have the greatest bearing on library manpower requirements. Persons interviewed included head 

librarians, library administrators, personnel officers, or 

others who were able to provide the information.

This appendix presents a brief description of the 

procedures used in selecting the sample for the survey 

phase of this study.

Industrial coverage

The survey included establishments primarily engaged 

in the following activities as defined in the 1967 edition 

of the Standard Industrial Classification Manual:

SIC 8211 — Elementary and Secondary Schools

SIC 8221 — Colleges, Universities and Professional 

Schools

SIC 8222 — Junior Colleges and Technical Institutes

SIC 8231 - Libraries and Information Centers

The survey also included libraries in industrial, 

commercial, and governmental establishments and institutions, such as hospitals, which engage in a wide variety 

of activities.

Geographic coverage

The survey provided data on a nationwide basis. 

Selection of respondents

The Nation’s libraries are situated in about 52,000 

institutions or institutional systems. The following is a 

breakdown by type:

Public school systems ................................................................18,000

Nonpublic schools.......................................................................17,000

Public libraries................................................................................ 7,000

Academic libraries.........................................................................2,000

Special libraries..........................................................................11,000

In developing the sample design, the universe was 

stratified first by type of library—public school, nonpublic school, public, academic, and special.1 These five 

types of libraries were substratified by size where 

possible. Public school systems, nonpublic schools, and 

academic institutions were each stratified on the basis of 

enrollment size. Public libraries were stratified by size of 

population served. Lack of information prohibited substratification of special libraries. Information was available from the Office of Education on the distribution of 

employed librarians by type of library. Additional data, 

primarily from the Office of Education, provided estimates of the variance of employment in each of these 

types of libraries. On the basis of these data, a sample of 

100 respondents was selected. The final distribution was 

as follows:

Public school systems ........................................................................26

Nonpublic schools................................................................................. 4

Public libraries......................................................................................35

Academic libraries............................................................................... 23

Special libraries.................................................................................... 12

Minimum establishment size

The survey included establishments employing at 

least one person assigned to library duties on a full-time 

or part-time basis. Establishments with no paid personnel specifically assigned to library duties were considered 

out-of-scope, and were replaced by alternates.

Occupational coverage

The survey covered all staff, excluding maintenance, 

employed in a library or assigned to library duties.

1 The BLS Office of Data Collection and Survey Operations

had, on magnetic tape, the U.S. Office of Education universes

for public school systems, nonpublic schools, and institutions of

higher education. The sample of public libraries was selected

from the universe compiled by the U.S. Office of Education for

its 1962 survey of public libraries. The sample of special libraries

was selected on the basis of information presented in the

1970-71 edition of the American Library Directory (New York,

R.R. Bowker Co., 1970).

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Janitors, building interior cleaners, laborers, groundskeepers, guards, and other maintenance personnel did 

not fall within the scope of the study. Appendix C 

presents the list of staff position descriptions, developed 

by BLS, for each of the four library occupations with 

which the study was specifically concerned:

Librarian

Specialist

Technical Assistant 

Clerk

library personnel in scope of the study who did not 

fit any of the four BLS library occupation descriptions 

were counted and classed separately as “other.”

Reference period

Survey data related to the fiscal year ending closest to 

June 30,1972, or to calendar year 1972.

Collection method

Data were collected by personal visit. Prior to the 

interview, collection materials had been sent to all 

respondents. These materials consisted of:

Library Manpower Study Interview Guide BLS 

3022. (See appendix D.)

Library Manpower Study Job List No. 1. (See 

appendix C.)

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Appendix C. Staff Position Descriptions

Job descriptions for library personnel vary not only 

by type of library but in many instances by library 

within each employment setting. An analysis of occupational staffing patterns based on a survey of limited size 

necessitated development of a list of job descriptions 

that would apply broadly to all types of libraries. The 

following is a list of job descriptions developed by the

BLS for use in conjunction with the Library Manpower 

Study Interview Guide. They are based, in part, on 

definitions approved by the American Library Association. Employers were asked to classify their staff 

according to the most appropriate occupational category.

Job List No. 1. — Library Manpower Study — Staff Position Description

Librarians

Librarians review and analyze the needs of the 

library’s users and formulate policies and procedures for 

staff implementation in meeting those needs. Their 

responsibilities may include: development, coordination, 

and administration of the library program; staff selection, supervision, evaluation, and training; delegation of 

duties, responsibilities, and authority; evaluation, selection, and classification of library materials and equipment; and instruction and assistance in the use of the 

library’s resources. The librarian’s expertise may lie in a 

particular area of librarianship such as bibliography, 

reference, or administration, or the librarian may combine librarianship with a subject or language specialty.

Specialists

Specialists include professional personnel who apply 

their knowledge of the theories, principles, and techniques of some subject specialty other than librarianship, 

such as languages, law, and computer technology, to 

work within a library. (Include audio-visual specialists 

and media specialists.)

Technical assistants

Technical assistants apply library-related skills to one 

or more of the functional areas of library operations for 

the purpose of supporting and assisting the professional

staff. Technical assistants may be responsible for such 

assignments as implementing circulation policies and 

procedures, preparing and maintaining library materials 

and equipment, and performing the various technical 

aspects of acquisitions processing or cataloging. Technical assistants may render reference services of a directional or factfinding nature. They may work in a 

supervisory capacity to direct the work of clerks or 

other technical assistants.

(Established rules and guidelines form the framework 

within which a technical assistant operates.)

Clerks

Clerks commonly perform work of a general office 

nature, such as typing, filing, and operating business 

machines. Their jobs may entail routine library-related 

tasks such as bookmarking and pocketing, shelving and 

the physical preparation of library books and materials, 

filing and maintaining circulation records, and typing 

and filing cards, forms, and reports.

Other library personnel

Includes all library personnel not classified above. 

However, maintenance and custodial employees as well 

as volunteers and student assistants are not to be 

included.

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Appendix D. Questionnaire Guide

The following interview guide was prepared as an aid 

to Bureau staff members in conducting the interviews. 

Its use assured the same questions being asked each 

employer. In addition, by following the format suggested in the guide, the written reports of each interview

tended to follow a standard format that aided in the 

analysis of the interviews.

The Guide was pretested with four employers (one of 

each type of library—school, academic, public, and 

special) in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

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BLS-3022 U S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

Office of Manpower Structure and Trends 

Washington, D.C. 20212

Office of Management and

Budget No. 44-S 72037

Approval expires 12/31/73

Your report will be held

in strict confidence.

Interview G uide for Library M anpower Study

This interview was conducted at:

Organization or institution

Address

Official’s name and title

Telephone No.

Interviewer’s name

Date

A. Introduction

This interview is being conducted by the BLS in conjunction with its study of library manpower. The study is 

being made for the U.S. Office of Education. It is designed to develop projections of employment requirements for 

library manpower by employment setting (academic, public, school, and special libraries) and by occupational level 

(librarians, technical assistants, and clerks). It will provide information on job functions and educational requirements— and how each is changing. The study also will contribute valuable information to the BLS occupational 

outlook'program. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will hold all information furnished by the respondent in strict 

confidence.

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B. Site Information (Reference period: End of fiscal year closest to June 30,1972 or end of calendar year 1972)

1. Type of library:

| | School library. Answer item a. on this page. Then skip to page 4 and answer question 2.

[ | Academic library. Answer item b. on page 3 and question 2 on page 4.

| | Public library. Answer item c. on page 4 and question 2 on page 4.

| | Special library. Answer item d. on page 4 and question 2 on page 4.

a. School library

(1) Institutional control and organizational level (Check one)

| | Public school system

| | Nonpublic school

If this library is in a nonpublic school, please specify whether the school is:

| | Elementary

| | Secondary

| | Combined elementary-secondary

(2) Enrollment category (Check one)

| | 25,000 pupils or more

□ 10,000-24,999 pupils

□ 5,000-9,999 pupils

□ 2,500-4,999 pupils

□ 300-2,999 pupils

| | Less than 300 pupils

(3) Number of classroom teachers (Specify)

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b. Academic library

(1) Institutional control (Check one)

□ Public

| 1 Private

(2) Level of education (Check one)

| | 4—year with graduate students

| | 4—year without graduate students

I | 2—year

(3) Enrollment category (Total “head count” of full-time and part-time, degree credit

and nondegree credit students. Check one)

I I 10,000 students or more

I I 5,000—9,999 students

I I 1,000-4,999 students

I I 500-999 students

I I Less than 500 students

(4) Instructional staff (Total full-time and part-time. Specify)

(5) Library units covered (Check one)

I I This report furnishes consolidated data for all library units on the campus

I I This report furnishes data for one of several libraries on the campus (such as general

university library, law school library, medical school library). Names of library units

not covered by this report:

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c. Public library

(1) Population category of area served (Check one)

| | 500,000 or more

□ 100,000-499,999

□ 50,000-99,999

□ 35,000—49,999

□ 25,000-34,999

| 1 Less than 25,000

d. Special library

(1) Subject speciality (Check one)

[ | Medical/health sciences

| | Law

| | Physical sciences, engineering

| | Business

[ | Other (specify)_____________________________

(2) Industry or nature of parent organization (Specify)

2. Total operating expenditures (budget). This question should be answered by each library.

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C. Staffing (Reference period: End of fiscal year closest to June 30, 1972 or end of calendar year 1972)

1. a. How many persons are employed in this library?_______________________________

b. How many were employed in 1 9 6 7 ?_________________________________________

Do not count maintenance or custodial personnel, laborers, volunteers, or student assistants in any 

of the totals or subtotals. All other staff members should be classified in the most appropriate 

occupational category: Librarian, Specialist, Technical Assistant, Clerk, Other (specify). Descriptions for each occupational category appear on Job List No. 1; personnel who fit none of the BLS 

library occupation descriptions should be classed as “Other.” Data should be presented, if 

possible, for full-time and part-time personnel and full-time equivalent (FTE) positions. Data 

should refer to the end of the fiscal year closest to June 30, 1972, and June 30, 1967, or the end 

of calendar years 1972 and 1967. Please indicate the source of the 1967 data by checking the 

appropriate box:

I I Personnel records Q Estimate

Staff

Number of Employees in 1972 Number of Employees in 1967

position

Total Fulltime

Parttime

FTE Total Fulltime

Parttime

FTE

Total .....................

Librarians...........

Specialists .........

Technical

assistants .........

Clerks..................

Other (specify)

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2. a. How many volunteers work in the library? (Specify number of volunteers and total manhours of assistance.)

b. How are volunteers utilized?

c. How does the number of volunteers in 1972 compare with that 5 years ago? (More? Less? About the same?)

d. Discuss any changes over the past 5 years in the manner and extent to which the library

utilizes volunteers.

e. What factors have contributed to these changes?

(SCHOOL AND ACADEMIC LIBRARIES ONLY: PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTION C3a BEFORE THE

INTERVIEW)

3. a. How many paid student assistants work in your library?

b. How are paid student assistants utilized?

c. How does the number of paid student assistants in 1972 compare with that 5 years ago?

(More? Less? About the same?)

d. Discuss any changes over the past 5 years in the manner and extent to which the library

utilizes paid student assistants.

e. What factors have contributed to these changes?

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4. Estimate the percentage distribution of library personnel in each of the 4 staff positions: By sex and race.

Sex

and

race

Percent Distribution of—

Librarians Specialists Technical

assistants Qerks

M ale.........................

Female ..................

W hite.......................

Negro and

other r a c e s...........

5. What changes have taken place over the last 5 years in the distribution of library staff by sex, race, and age?

6. What factors influenced these changes?

a. Internal factors— e.g., recruitment, personnel policy, salary level.

b. External factors— e.g., supply of qualified applicants, economic conditions.

7. Minority groups—

a. Does your library' have a recruitment program aimed at increasing the number of minority group

members on your staff?

b. If yes:

(1) Discuss recruitment methods.

(2) What staff positions are you recruiting for?

(3) Discuss difficulties encountered in minority group recruiting program.

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D. Job Functions

1. Discuss the changes, if any, which have taken place during the past 5 years in the duties performed by

a. Librarians

b. Specialists

c. Technical assistants

d. Clerks

2. Describe shift of duties from one staff position to another over the past 5 years.

3. Describe any changes in duties expected to take place over the next 10 years.

4. Do you anticipate any shift of duties from one staff position to another over the next 10 years?

5. Describe any new or emerging occupations in terms of the duties performed.

6. How is technology expected to affect job functions and staffing patterns over the next 10 years?

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PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTION E l BEFORE THE INTER VIEW

E. Education and Training (Reference period: End of fiscal year closer to June 30,1972 or end of calendar year 1972)

1. What is the educational level attained by your present staff? (Enter number of employees by staff position and highest level of education attained.

Do not include maintenance or custodial personnel, laborers; personnel classified as “Other” in question Cl; student assistants or volunteers.)

Staff

position Total

Less

than

high

school

graduate

High

school

graduate

Some

college

— no

earned

degree

Associate degree Bachelor’s degree Graduate degree(s)

Area of Concentration Area of Concentration Area(s) of Concentration

Library

science Other Library

science Other Library

science Other

Double degree

library and

other curriculum

Librarian . . .

Specialist . . .

Technical

assistant . .

C lerk ............

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2. Indicate the basic minimum requirements at the entry level for persons in each of the following staff positions:

Staff Position Education Experience Certification

Librarian.........

Specialist.........

Technical

assistant.........

G e r k ................

NOT APPLICABLE

NOT APPLICABLE

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3. Beyond the minimal entry requirements, what qualifications do you seek? E.g., additional education,

experience, personal characteristics, etc.

4. Regarding the educational background of your staff, are there any areas:

a. In which they lack necessary preparation for the work they do?

If so, which areas?

b. In which their preparation overqualifies them for the work they do?

If so, which areas?

5. How well do library education and training programs prepare graduates for work in your library?

Are there any areas in which the library feels current training is inadequate or irrelevant?

If so, what areas?

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6. How have educational requirements for library manpower changed during the past 5 years? (Specify

by staff position.)

7. Looking ahead, do you expect the library personnel you hire over the next 10 years to have about the same

educational qualifications as your present staff? If not, what changes in educational preparation of your

staff do you anticipate? (Specify by staff position.)

8. Describe any new or emerging occupations in terms o f qualifications (educational and otherwise)

necessary.

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9. Describe the pattern of advancement (career ladder) within each staff position; from one staff position

to the next. (Consider formal education; on-the-job training; experience. Specify length of time, if

established.)

10. Identify and discuss you* current manpower problems.

PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS FI AND F2 BEFORE THE INTER VIEW

F. Supply (Reference period: End Of fiscal year closest to June 30, 1972 or end of calendar year 1972)

1 * Was the number of staff positions reduced during the past year?

By how many?

Staff positions Number

Librarians .............................

Specialists .............................

Technical assistants ......

C lerks.....................................

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2, Hdw miany positions were filled during the past year?

Staff positions Number

Librarians...............................

Specialists .............................

Technical assistants ..............

Clerks ......................................

b. Indicate the sources of personnel placed during the past year. Please enter each new hire (or 

promotion or transfer) only once; if more than one source applies, mark the one which 

appears first on the list.

Source Librarians Specialists Technical

assistants Clerks

Slew graduates—

Library programs ......................................

Non-library programs .........

Promotions within the library .........................

/Transfers within this employment setting ....

Tfarisfeh fforit other libraries—

School ........................................................

Acadehiic ......................

Public .................... ...................................

Special ........................................................

Transfers from non-library occupations .........

Re-entrants to the labor fo rce ...........................

Other (specify)

— --------------------

-------------------

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3. Discuss how this hiring pattern differs from that 5 years ago.

4 i In the last $ yeats, how have your actual hiring experiences related to the qualifications you were

seeking?

5. What measures have been taken in the last 5 years to alleviate manpower problems?

(E .g., specific recruiting campaigns, supplementary training programs, job redesign.)

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6. In what occupations do you currently experience difficulty obtaining qualified personnel?

What are the reasons?

[ | General shortage of trained personnel

| | Salary structure

| | Recruitment problems (e.g., location)

| | Constraints imposed by civil service or personnel department regulations

| | Other (specify) ___________________________________________________

7. What do you do if you cannot get a qualified individual for a position?

| | Hire persons with less than the desired qualifications and train on-the-job

| | Help existing staff to obtain additional formal education

I [ Leave the position vacant until a qualified person becomes available

| | Other (sp e c ify )___________________________________________________

8. In what positions do you currently experience no difficulty in obtaining qualified personnel?

9. How has the overall library manpower supply situation changed over the past 5 years?

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G. Requirements

1. Indicate the major factors that have contributed to employment growth over the past 10 years, e.g.,

expansion of facilities, increased demand for library services, changes in technology, job redesign,

budget changes, implementation of State, American Library Association, or other standards.

2. In your opinion, what factors will affect your library manpower requirements in the next 10 years?

3. Have you developed projections of library employment needs for the future?

anticipated needs? On what criteria are these needs based?

If so, what are your

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PLEASE COMPLETE QUESTIONS HI AND H2 BEFORE THE INTERVIEW

H. Effect of Federal Funding (Reference period: End of fiscal year closest to June 30, 1972 or end of calendar

year 1972)

1. a. What proportion of your total library budget is Federally financed?

b. Did Federal funds account for a larger or smaller proportion of your budget 5 years ago?

2. a. What are the program sources of Federal funding?

b. Have the sources of Federal Financing changed over the past 5 years? If so, how?

3. What impact, if any, has the availability of Federal funds had on your manpower situation?

I. Interviewer’s Comments

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Appendix E. Selected Bibliography

Library statistics and directories

Academic Library Statistics 1970-71, A compilation of 

statistics from the 78 university library members 

of the Association of Research Libraries, Washington, D.C., ARL, n.d.

American Association of Law Libraries, Directory o f

Law Libraries, 1972 edition, Chicago, AALL, 

1972. Issued biennially.

American Library Association, Library Statistics: A

Handbook o f Concepts, Definitions, and Terminology, Chicago, ALA, 1966. Revision in progress.

American Library Directory 1970-71, 27th edition. New 

York, R.R. Bowker Company, 1970. Issued 

biennially.

American Medical Association, Directory o f Health

Sciences Libraries in the United States 1969,

Chicago, AMA, 1970.

Crawford, Susan, ed., “Health Sciences Libraries in the 

United States: A Statistical Profile,” published as a 

supplement to the Bulletin o f the Medical Library

Association, April 1972.

Gilford, Dorothy N. and Frank L. Schick, “Statistics of 

Libraries for the 1970’s,” pp. 133-37 in The

Bowker Annual o f Library and Book Trade Information, 17th edition, New York, R.R. Bowker 

Company, 1972.

Grego, Noel R., 1972 Directory o f Institutions Offering

or Planning Programs for the Training o f Library

Technical Assistants, 3rd edition, Chicago, Council 

on Library Technology, 1971.

Kruzas, Anthony T., Directory o f Special Libraries and

Information Centers, 2nd edition, Detroit, Gale 

Research Company, 1968.

Schick, Frank L., “Library Statistics: A Century Plus,” 

American Libraries, July-August 1971, pp. 727-31.

Schick, Frank L., ed., North American Library Education Directory and Statistics 1966-68, Chicago, 

American Library Association, 1968.

Schick, Frank L., and D. Kathryn Weintraub, eds., North

American Library Education Directory and Statistics 1969-71, Chicago, American Library Association, 1972.

U.S. Bureau of the Census, Census of Governments, 

1967, Vol. 3, No. 2, Compendium o f Public

Employment, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 1969.

________Census of Population: 1970, Subject Reports,

Final Report PC (2)-7A, Occupational Characteristics, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1973.

________Census of Population: 1970, Subject Reports,

Final Report PC (2)-7C, Occupation by Industry,

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 

D.C., 1972.

________ 1970 Occupation and Industry Classification

Systems in Terms o f Their 1960 Occupation and

Industry Elements, by John A. Priebe, Joan 

Heinkel, and Stanley Greene (Technical Paper No. 

26), U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 

D.C. 1972.

________Public Employment in 1970. Series GE

70-No. 1, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 1971. Issued annually.

U.S. Office of Education, Library Statistics o f Colleges

and Universities 1959-60, Part 2: Analytic Report, 

by Barbara Denison and Doris C. Holladay, U.S. 

Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 

1962.

________Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities

1961-62, Part 2: Analytic Report, by Theodore 

Samore, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 1964.

________Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities

1963-64, Analytic Report, by Theodore Samore, 

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 

D.C., 1968.

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___ Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities,

Analytic Report, Fall 1968, by Bronson Price, 

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 

D.C., 1970.

----- Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities,

Fall 1969, Analytic Report, by Bronson Price and 

Doris C. Holladay, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1971.

, . Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities,

Fall 1971, Analytic Report (Part C), by Stanley V. 

Smith, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C., 1973.

___ Planning for a Nationwide System o f Library

Statistics, by David C. Palmer. Final report of the 

Library Administration Division of ALA. U.S. 

Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.,

1970.

----- Public School Library Statistics 1962-63, by

Richard L. Darling, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1964.

___ Statistics o f Local Public School Systems

1967, Fall 1967: Pupils, Schools, Staff. 1966-67: 

Expenditures, by Gerald Kahn and Warren A. 

Hughes, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1969.

___ Statistics o f Local Public School Systems Fall

1968, Schools, Pupils, and Staff, by Gerald Kahn 

and Warren A. Hughes, U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, D.C., 1970.

___ Statistics o f Local Public School Systems Fall

1969, Pupils and Staff, by Warren A. Hughes, U.S. 

Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.,

1971.

____Statistics o f Local Public School Systems Fall

1970, Staff, by Warren A. Hughes, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1973.

____Statistics o f Local Public School Systems Fall

1971, Staff, by Warren A. Hughes, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. Forthcoming.

____Statistics o f Public School Libraries 1960-61,

Part I, Basic Tables, by Mary Helen Mahar and 

Doris C. Holladay, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1964.

___ Statistics o f Public School Libraries 1960-61,

Part II, Analysis and Interpretation, by Mary 

Helen Mahar, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 1965 (?)

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1959-60,

by Carol Hobson and Samuel Schloss, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1963.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1961-62,

by Carol Hobson and Samuel Schloss, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1964.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1963-64,

U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, 

D.C., 1967.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1965-66,

by Clayton D. Hutchins and Richard H. Barr, U.S. 

Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.,

1968.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1967-68,

by Richard H. Barr and Geraldine J. Scott, U.S. 

Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 

1970.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1969-70,

by Geraldine J. Scott, U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, D.C., 1973.

___ Statistics o f State School Systems 1971-72,

by Geraldine J. Scott, U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, D.C. Forthcoming.

___ Survey o f Federal Libraries 1972, by

Edwin E. Olson, Rosemary Merritt, and Marcia 

Bellassai. Sponsored by the Federal Library Committee. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. Forthcoming.

Library manpower utilization,

staffing patterns

American Library Association, “The subprofessional or 

technical assistant: a statement of definition,” 

ALA Bulletin, April 1968, pp. 387-97.

Asheim, Lester, “Education and manpower for librarianship,” ALA Bulletin, October 1968, pp. 1096-106.

Ayers, Jerry B., Library Staff Needs in Southern

Appalachian Schools, Cookeville, Tennessee, Tennessee Technological University, 1972.

Brown, Thomas R., “Task Analysis Study in IllinoisPhase I of a Cooperative Project,” American

Libraries, March 1971, pp. 312-14.

Bundy, Mary Lee, “Libraries, Manpower, and Automation: Shaping the Future of Libraries,” Library

Trends, April 1970, pp. 464-86.

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The Case for Library Technical Assistants and Library

Clerks in Indiana, Manpower Report 69-3, Lafayette, Indiana, Office of Manpower Studies, School 

of Technology, Purdue University, 1969.

Casey, Genevieve, “library Manpower in the Detroit 

Metropolitan Region,” American Libraries, September 1970, pp. 787-89.

Christianson, Elin, Paraprofessional and Nonprofessional

Staff in Special Libraries, SLA State-of-the-Art 

Review No. 2, New York, Special Libraries Association, 1973.

Doerschuk, Ernest E., Jr., “Facing Realities: The Pennsylvania Library Manpower Survey,” PLA Bulletin,

January 1972, pp. 21-24.

Ginzberg, Eli and Carol A. Brown, Manpower for Library Services, Columbia University, Conservation 

of Human Resources Project, New York, 1967.

Green, Charlotte, “Nonprofessional library Workers in 

the Science Libraries in Industry,” Special Libraries, October 1970, pp. 453-59.

Grego, Noel R. and Sister Mary Chrysantha Rudnik,/oZ? 

Description and Certification for Library Technical Assistants, Chicago, Council on Library Technology, 1970.

“Guidelines for Using Volunteers in Libraries,” American Libraries, April 1971, pp. 407-08.

James, John E., “Library Technician Program: The 

Library Technician Graduates’ Point of View,” 

Special Libraries, July-August 1971, pp. 268-78.

Library Education and Manpower; A Statement o f

Policy Adopted by the Council o f the ALA, June

30, 1970, Chicago, American Library Association, 

1970.

Medical Library Association, Standards for Medical

Library Technicians, Chicago, MLA, 1970.

Rogers, A. Robert, “More or Less? Forecasting Library 

Manpower in Ohio,” OLA Bulletin, October 1970, 

pp. 4-8.

Rosenthal, Joseph A., “Nonprofessionals and Cataloging: A Survey of Five Libraries,” Library Resources and Technical Services, Summer 1969, pp. 

321-31.

Rudnik, Sister Mary Chrysantha, “What Every Librarian 

Should Know About Library Technical Assistants,” Wilson Library Bulletin, September 1971, 

pp. 67-72.

Social and Educational Research and Development, Inc., 

A Task Analysis o f Library Jobs in the State o f

Illinois, Silver Spring, Maryland, SERD, 1970.

U.S. Employment Service, Occupations in Library Science, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1973.

Ward, James E., Education and Manpower in Tennessee

Libraries, Nashville, David Lipscomb College, 

1971.

Library education

American Library Association, Criteria for Programs to

Prepare Library/Medical Technical Assistants, Chicago, ALA, 1971.

Boaz, Martha, “Some Current Concepts about Library 

Education,” College and Research Libraries, January 1972, pp. 18-23.

Boll, John J. “A Basis for Library Education,” Library

Quarterly, April 1972, pp. 195-211.

Bone, Larry Earl and Frederic R. Hartz, “Taking the 

Full Ride; A Librarian’s Routes to Continuing 

Education,” Library Journal, Oct. 1, 1970, pp. 

3244-46.

The California Community Colleges, Office of the 

Chancellor, The Library Technical Assistant Program; Guidelines and Course Content for Community College Programs, Sacramento, The California Community Colleges, 1970.

Chisholm, Margaret E. and Charles R. Anderson, Education, Job Roles, and Upward Mobility: An Investigation o f Opportunities at the Pre- and Paraprofessional Level in Government Libraries in the Washington, D.C. Area, College Park, School of Library 

and Information Services, University of Maryland, 

1973.

Danton, Periam J., Between MLS and Ph.D.: A Study o f

Sixth Year Specialist Programs in Accredited

Library Schools, Chicago, American Library Association, 1970.

Goldhor, Herbert, ed., Education for Librarianship: The

Design o f the Curriculum o f Library Schools,

Monograph Series No. 11, Urbana, University of 

Illinois Graduate School of Library Science, 1971.

Hoey, E. L., “Establishing a medical library technology 

program the SUNY experience; with course descriptions,” Medical Library Association Bulletin,

April 1969, pp. 151-59.

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Horn, Andrew H., “Time for Decision: Library Education for the Seventies,” Special Libraries, December 1971, pp. 515-23.

Kortendick, James J. and Elizabeth W. Stone, Job

Dimensions and Educational Needs in Librarianship, Chicago, American Library Association, 

1971.

“MLA Official Policy Statement on the Training of 

Medical Library Technicians.” Bulletin o f the

Medical Library Association, October 1967, 

p. 510.

Monroe, Margaret E., “Education in Librarianship for 

Serving the Disadvantaged,” Library Trends, October 1971, pp. 445-62.

Neill, Samuel D., “Who Needs to go to a Graduate 

Library School?” Journal o f Education for Librarianship, Spring 1973, pp. 212-25.

Ryan, Dorothy E., “Library Education in the Soaring 

Seventies,” Southeastern Librarian, Winter 1970, 

pp. 232-39.

Shores, Louis, and others, The Tex-Tec Syllabi: Courses

o f Study for Library Technical Assistants, Washington, D.C., Communication Service Corporation, 

1968.

Stone, Elizabeth W., “Continuing Education for Librarianship,” American Libraries, June 1970, pp. 

543-53.

Stone, Elizabeth W., Factors related to the professional

development o f librarians, Metuchen, N.J., The 

Scarecrow Press, 1969.

Stone, Elizabeth W., ed., “Personnel Development and 

Continuing Education in Libraries,” Library

Trends, July 1971. Entire issue.

Wasserman, Paul, “Professional Adaptation: Library 

Education Mandate,” Library Journal, Apr. 1, 

1970, pp. 1281-88.

School library manpower

American Association of School Librarians and Department of Audiovisual Instruction of the National 

Education Association (now the Association for 

Educational Communication and Technology), 

Standards for School Media Programs, Chicago and 

Washington, D.C., American library Association 

and National Education Association, 1969.

American Library Association, Occupational Definitions

for School Library Media Personnel, Chicago, 

ALA, 1971.

American Library Association, School Library Manpower Project: Phase I-Final Report, Chicago, 

ALA, 1970.

American Library Association, School Library Personnel: Task Analysis Survey, Chicago, ALA, 1969.

Bergeson, Clarence O., “Relationship of Library Science 

and Audiovisual Instruction,” Audio vis ual Instruction, February 1967, pp. 101-03.

California State Department of Education, School Libraries in California: A Report to the California 

Legislature, prepared by Marvin Howell, Sacramento, 1968.

Case, Robert N., “School Library Manpower Project 

Enters First Year,” Audiovisual Instruction, January 1969, pp. 42-43.

Case, Robert N., and Anna Mary Lowrey, “School 

Library Manpower Project: A Report on Phase I,” 

American Libraries, January 1971, pp. 98-101.

“A Casebook of School Library Services,” American

Libraries, February 1970, pp. 162-77.

Clark, Geraldine, “Secondary School Libraries: Problems, Problems, Problems,” Library Journal,

Mar. 15, 1973, pp. 972-73.

Delaney, Arthur A., “School Audiovisual - Library 

Services: Whose Job?” Audiovisual Instruction,

November 1970, pp. 26-28.

Gaver, Mary V., Services o f Secondary School Media

Centers, Chicago, American Library Association, 

1971.

Grady, William F., “Certification of Audiovisual Personnel-a Nationwide Status Report,” Audiovisual Instruction, March 1971, pp. 8-18.

Graham, Mae, ed., “The Changing Nature of the School 

Library,” Library Trends, April 1969. Entire issue.

Guthrie, Melvin Glenn, A Study o f Conditions and

Services in School Libraries in the State o f

Arizona, A Supplementary Report of the Arizona 

Library Survey, Tempe, Bureau of Educational 

Research and Services, College of Education, 

Arizona State University, 1968.

Lewis, Philip, ed., “New Dimensions in Educational 

Technology for Multi-Media Centers,” Library

Trends, April 1971. Entire issue.

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Lowrey, Anna Mary, “School Library Manpower Project 

Launches Phase II,” Audiovisual Instruction, January 1972, pp. 26-28.

Picco, John P., ed., The Secondary School Library in

Transition: A Report, Portland, Oregon, Knapp 

School Libraries Project and the School of Education, Portland State College, March 1967.

Srygley, Sara K., ed., “School Library Services and 

Administration at the School District Level,” 

Library Trends, April 1968. Entire issue.

U.S. Office of Education, The Education Professions: A

Report on the People Who Serve Our Schools and

Colleges - 1968, U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, D.C., 1969. First of a series of annual 

reports required by the Education Professions 

Development Act.

U.S. Office of Education, Emphasis on Excellence in

School Media Programs, U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, D.C., 1969.

U.S. Office of Education, The School Library as a

Materials Center: Educational Needs o f Librarians

and Teachers in its Administration and Use, edited 

by Mary Helen Mahar, U.S. Government Printing 

Office, Washington, D.C., 1964.

U.S. Office of Education, Survey o f School Library

Standards by Richard L. Darling, U.S. Government 

Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1964.

Wallington, James, “Act I of JIMS (Jobs in Instructional 

Media Study),” Audiovisual Instruction, May 

1970, pp. 25-30.

Wallington, James, “Act II of JIMS (Jobs in Instructional Media Study),”Audiovisual Instruction, January 1972, pp. 29-32.

Wallington, James et al, Jobs in Instructional Media, 

Washington, D.C., National Education Association,

1969.

Public library manpower

American Library Association, Certification o f Public

Librarians in the United States, prepared by 

Ruth R. Frame, Chicago, ALA, 1972.

Bone, Larry Earl, ed., “Current Trends in Urban Main 

Libraries,” Library Trends, April 1972. Entire 

issue.

Budington, William S., ed., “Library Services in Metropolitan Areas,” Library Trends, October 1974. 

Entire issue.

Childers, Tom, and Beth Krevitt, “Municipal Funding of 

Library Services,” American Libraries, January 

1972, pp. 53-57.

Conant, Ralph and Kathleen Molz, ed., The Metropolitan Library, Cambridge, MIT Press, 1972.

Conant, Ralph W., ed., The Public Library and the City, 

Cambridge, MIT Press, 1965.

Martin, Lowell A., Library Response to Urban Change:

A Study o f the Chicago Public Library, Chicago, 

American Library Association, 1969.

“Minimum Professional Personnel and Staffing Patterns 

for Maryland’s Public Library System: A Proposal,” Library Journal, October 15,1968.

Public Library Association, Minimum Standards for

Public Library Systems, 1966, Chicago, American 

Library Association, 1967.

Academic library manpower

Baumol, William J., and Matityahu Marcus, Economics

o f Academic Libraries, prepared for Council on 

Library Resources by Mathematica, Inc., American 

Council on Education, Washington, D.C., 1973.

Carnegie Commission on Higher Education, The Fourth

Revolution: Instructional Technology in Higher

Education, New York, McGraw Hill, 1972.

Deale, H. Vail, ed., “Trends in College Librarianship,” 

Library Trends, July 1969. Entire issue.

Morrison, Perry D., The Career o f the Academic Librarian, Chicago, American Library Association, 1969.

Special library manpower

American Documentation Institute, Special Libraries:

Problems and Cooperative Potentials, by Robert J. 

Havlik, Bill M. Woods, and Leona M. Vogt. A 

Report Prepared for the National Advisory Commission on Libraries, Washington, D.C., 1967.

Kenyon, Carleton W., “The Dimensions of Law Librarianship,” Special Libraries, March 1971, pp. 

129-35.

Kronick, David A., Lesliebeth Rothenberg, and others, 

“An Investigation of the Education Needs of 

Health Sciences Library Manpower,” published as 

follows in various issues of the Bulletin o f the

Medical Library Association: Part I, Definition of 

the Manpower Problem and Research Design,

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January 1970, pp. 7-17. Part II, Health-Related 

Institutions and their Library Resources, October

1970, pp. 510-20, Part III, Manpower Supply and 

Demand in Health Sciences Libraries, January

1971, pp. 21-30. Part IV, Characteristics of Manpower in the Health Sciences Library, January 

1971, pp. 31-40. Part V, Manpower for Hospital 

Libraries, July 1971, pp. 392403. Part VII, 

Summary and Conclusions, April 1972, pp. 

292-300. Part VI was published as follows: Lesliebeth Rothenberg and others, “A Job-Task Index 

for Evaluating Professional Personnel Utilization in 

Libraries,” Library Quarterly, October 1971, pp. 

320-28.

Ladendorf, Janice M., The Changing Role o f the Special

Librarian in Industry, Business, and Government,

SLA State-of-the-Art Review No. 1, New York: 

Special Libraries Association, 1973.

Lewis, Alfred J., “Law Library Statistics,” pp. 301-07 in 

The Bowker Annual o f Library and Book Trade

Information, 18th edition, New York, R.R. Bowker Company, 1973.

Lewis, Alfred J., “ 1969 Statistical Survey of Law School 

Libraries and Librarians,” Law Library Journal

May 1970, pp. 267-72. (Survey results have 

appeared annually since 1970 in the May issue of 

Law Library Journal.)

McGuirl, Marlene, “Summary of the Survey of Law

Libraries Serving a Local Bar,” Law Library

Journal, May 1972, pp. 244-62.

Schick, Frank L., “The Century Gap of Law Library 

Statistics,” Law Library Journal February 1968,

pp. 2-6.

Titley, Joan, ed., “Health Sciences Libraries,” Library

Trends, July 1974. Entire issue.

BLS projections to 1985

The U.S. Economy in 1985: A summary o f BLS

Projections, Bulletin 1809 (1974). This bulletin 

consists of reprints of four articles from the 

Monthly Labor Review, December 1973, and 

added appendixes containing explanatory notes 

and detail tables.

The Structure o f the U.S. Economy in 1980 and 1985,

Bulletin 1831. Forthcoming.

Occupational Manpower and Training Needs, Bulletin 

1824 (1974). Revised 1974.

Tomorrow’s Manpower Needs, Vol. M il, Bulletin 1606, 

February 1969 and Vol. IV (Revised), Bulletin 

1737, 1971.

The 1970 and 1980 industry-occupation matrix 

tables and other manpower data are presented in 

Vol. IV. The 1985 industry-occupation matrix 

tables are scheduled for publication in 1975.

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Appendix F. Detailed Tables

F-l. Distribution of staff in college and university libraries, by staff position and 

control and type of institution, fall 1971

F-2. Employment of librarians by sex and State, 1960 and 1970

F-3. Employment of library attendants and assistants by sex and State, 1960 and 1970

F-4. Employment of librarians and library attendants and assistants, by State, 1970 

and 1960-70 increase

F-5. Library staff in colleges and universities, by State, fall 1971

F-6. Employment of librarians in public elementary and secondary schools, by State 

and selected academic years

Table F-1. Distribution of staff in college and university libraries, by staff position

and control and type of institution, fall 1971

Control and type of

institution

Total

staff

Librarians Other professional staff2

Clerical and

other staff

Total, public and private.......................... 48,211 18,295 3,054 26,862

Universities....................................................... 23,681 8,138 1,253 14,290

4-year institutions with

graduate students.................................................. 13,913 5,633 913 7,367

4-year institutions without graduate students........................................... 4,816 2,122 493 2,201

2-year institutions....................................................... 5,800 2,402 395 3,003

Total, pub lic............................................... 30,121 11,403 1,716 17,002

Universities....................................................... 15,549 5,411 835 9,302

4-year institutions with

graduate students.................................................. 8,376 3,458 456 4,462

4-year institutions without graduate students........................................... 1,025 449 101 475

2-year institutions...................................................... 5,170 2,085 323 2,762

Total,1 private ........................................... 18,090 6,892 1,338 9,860

Universities....................................................... 8,132 2,727 418 4,988

4-year institutions with

graduate students.................................................. 5,537 *2,175 457 2,905

4-year institutions without graduate students........................................... 3,791 1,673 392 1,726

2-year institutions....................................................... 630 317 72 241

1 Excludes co n trib u ted service staff.

2 Includes persons w h o , though not librarians, are in positions

no rm ally requiring a t least a bachelor's degree.

N O T E : T h e e m p lo y m e n t data in this table are expressed in

"fu ll-tim e equivalents" (fu ll-tim e personnel plus fu ll-tim e eq u ivalent o f part-tim e personnel) and th erefo re are n o t com parable

w ith th e BLS estimates shown in tab le 1, w hich include bo th

fu ll-tim e and p art-tim e personnel.

S O U R C E : Library Statistics of Colleges and Universities, Fall

1971 Analytic Report (Part C) (O ffic e o f E du catio n, 1 97 3 ,

O E -7 4 -1 1 4 1 7 ).

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State

1970 1960

Total Men Women Total Men Women

United S tates............................................... 123,549 22,286 101,263 75,672 11,023 64,649

Alabam a............................................................................ 1,569 192 1,377 1,060 99 961

Alaska .............................................................................. 173 24 149 68 4 64

Arizona ............................................................................ 971 186 785 478 44 434

Arkansas............................................................................ 1,040 106 934 569 22 547

C alifornia......................................................................... 10,631 2,382 8,249 7,697 1,344 6,353

Colorado .......................................................................... 1,463 259 1,204 864 130 734

Connecticut..................................................................... 1,944 368 1,576 1,469 253 1,216

Delaware .......................................................................... 355 33 322 185 11 174

District of Columbia....................................................... 1,499 460 1,039 1,361 388 973

F lo rid a .............................................................................. 3,339 423 2,916 1,566 175 1,391

Georgia.............................................................................. 2,684 332 2,352 1,321 123 1,198

Hawaii .............................................................................. 668 112 556 354 58 296

Idaho ................................................................................. 492 62 430 255 42 213

Illinois .............................................................................. 6,909 1,341 5,568 4,198 674 3,524

Indiana.............................................................................. 2,835 541 2,294 1,856 264 1,592

Io w a ................................................................................... • 2,066 376 1,690 1,280 138 1,142

Kansas .............................................................................. 1,707 207 1,500 1,179 161 1,018

Kentucky .......................................................................... 1,660 164 1,496 903 58 845

Louisiana......................................................................... 1,792 264 1,528 1,226 166 1,060

M ain e ................................................................................. 630 114 516 412 35 377

M arylan d .......................................................................... 3,260 656 2,604 1,589 319 1,270

Massachusetts.................................................................. 4,518 1,000 3,518 3,335 586 2,749

Michigan............................................................................ 4,635 890 3,745 2,766 461 2,305

Minnesota.......................................................................... 2,509 499 2,010 1,718 202 1,516

Mississippi ....................................................................... 1,117 167 950 590 22 568

M issouri............................................................................ 2,421 419 2,002 1,559 211 1,348

M ontana............................................................................ 554 79 475 256 30 226

Nebraska .......................................................................... 913 101 812 695 70 625

Nevada.............................................................................. 272 66 206 90 15 75

New Hampshire .............................................................. 493 127 366 377 57 320

New Jersey................................. ..................................... 4,337 728 3,609 2,513 354 2,159

New M exico ..................................................................... 693 126 567 351 50 301

New Y o rk .......................................................................... 12,169 2,967 9,202 8,053 1,570 6,483

North C arolina................................................................ 3,223 369 2,854 1,582 167 1,415

North D akota................................................................... 384 50 334 243 36 207

O h io ................................................................................... 6,196 996 5,230 3,855 479 3,376

Oklahoma.......................................................................... 1,377 293 1,084 930 139 791

O regon.............................................................................. 1,401 211 1,190 896 122 774

Pennsylvania..................................................................... 6,832 1,355 5,477 3,682 491 3,191

Rhode Island ................................................................... 522 93 429 342 52 290

South C arolina................................................................ 1,627 139 1,488 802 34 768

South D akota.................................................................. 499 62 437 304 29 275

Tennessee......................................................................... 2,050 283 1,767 1,270 139 1,131

T e x a s ................................................................................. 6,021 810 5,211 3,109 388 2,721

U ta h ................................................................................... 1,033 200 833 506 84 422

Verm ont............................................................................ 430 93 337 281 43 238

Virginia ............................................................................ 3,449 537 2,912 1,865 240 1,625

Washington....................................................................... 2,503 429 2,074 1,667 192 1,475

West Virginia .................................................................. 665 104 561 438 53 385

Wisconsin......................................................................... 2,740 485 2,255 1,522 187 1,335

W yo m ing .......................................................................... 279 36 243 185 12 173

N O T E : 1 96 0 and 1 9 7 0 data are not strictly com parable S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f the Census, Census o f Population:

since th e 1 9 7 0 occupational classification system excludes 1 97 0 , C h aracteristics o f the P o p u la tio n , V o l. 1, Parts 1 -50.

certain persons w h o w ere counted as librarians in 1 9 6 0 .

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
State

1970 1960

Total Men Women Total Men Women

United S tates................................................ 126,207 26,207 99,337 37,059 9,003 28,056

Alabam a............................................................................ 1,349 314 1,035 336 111 225

Alaska .............................................................................. 131 12 119 25 1 24

Arizona ............................................................................ 1,006 241 765 229 24 205

Arkansas............................................................................ 724 156 568 201 37 164

California.......................................................................... 15,835 3,953 11,882 4,158 916 3,242

Colorado .......................................................................... 1,602 336 1,266 276 88 188

Connecticut..................................................................... 2,522 514 2,008 928 200 728

Delaware .......................................................................... 350 37 313 123 19 104

District of Columbia....................................................... 1,197 505 692 581 316 265

F lo rid a.............................................................................. 3,108 732 2,376 468 116 352

Georgia............................................................................... 2,045 474 1,571 486 121 365

Hawaii .............................................................................. 581 96 485 146 38 108

Id a h o ................................................................................. 410 94 316 119 32 87

Illinois .............................................................................. 6,091 1,308 4,783 2,283 577 1,706

Indiana............................................................................... 3,183 611 2,572 859 218 641

Io w a ................................................................................... 2,075 295 1,780 529 95 434

Kansas ............................................................................... 1,608 330 1,278 436 74 362

Kentucky .......................................................................... 1,528 329 1,199 411 124 287

Louisiana.......................................................................... 1,609 428 1,181 587 151 436

M ain e ................................................................................. 528 72 456 184 30 154

Maryland .......................................................................... 2,919 793 2,126 741 201 540

Massachusetts................................................................... 5,809 1,251 4,558 1,952 491 1,461

Michigan............................................................................ 5,426 953 4,473 1,573 392 1,181

Minnesota.......................................................................... 2,906 413 2,493 917 144 773

Mississippi ....................................................................... 938 193 745 263 57 206

M issouri............................................................................ 3,039 675 2,364 858 272 586

M ontana............................................................................ 489 59 430 104 24 80

Nebraska .......................................................................... 919 144 775 295 63 232

Nevada............................................................................... 136 31 105 52 14 38

New Hampshire .............................................................. 624 142 482 186 44 142

New Jersey....................................................................... 3,863 740 3,123 1,263 290 973

New M exico ..................................................................... 648 76 552 121 31 90

New Y o rk .......................................................................... 13,060 3,259 9,801 3,959 1,147 2,812

North Carolina................................................................ 2,643 585 2,058 739 207 532

North D akota................................................................... 434 60 374 52 15 37

O h io ................................................................................... 6,282 1,072 5,210 2,357 441 1,916

Oklahoma.......................................................................... 1,209 240 969 384 103 281

O regon.............................................................................. 1,933 233 1,700 503 56 447

Pennsylvania..................................................................... 5,741 1,194 4,547 1,712 354 1,358

Rhode Island ................................................................... 810 203 607 220 76 144

South Carolina................................................................ 922 115 807 291 57 234

South D akota................................................................... 494 46 448 110 14 96

Tennessee.......................................................................... 1,677 423 1,254 632 172 460

T e x a s ................................................................................. 4,894 1,189 3,705 1,471 386 1,085

U ta h ................................................................................... 700 155 545 226 46 180

Verm ont............................................................................ 438 67 371 108 18 90

Virginia ............................................................................ 2,992 708 2,284 793 240 553

Washington....................................................................... 2,712 354 2,358 602 96 506

West Virginia ................................................................... 508 98 410 275 72 203

Wisconsin.......................................................................... 3,311 482 2,829 877 180 697

Wyoming .......................................................................... 249 60 189 58 12 46

N O T E : 1 9 6 0 and 1 9 7 0 census data are n o t strictly com ­

parable because (1) the 1 9 7 0 occupational classification system

counted as library atten dants and assistants certain occupations

w hich had n o t been in this category in 1 9 6 0 , and (2) the lower

age lim it fo r th e civilian labor fo rce was changed fro m 14 to 16

years.

S O U R C E : U .S . Bureau of th e Census, Census o f Population:

1 97 0 , Characteristics o f the Population, V o l. 1, Parts 1 -5 0.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
State

Librarians Library attendants

and assistants

1970 1960-70

increase 1970

1960-70

increase

United States .................................................. 123,549 47,877 126,207 89,148

A labam a.............................................................................. 1,569 509 1,349 1,013

Alaska ................................................................................... 173 105 131 106

A rizona................................................................................. 971 493 1,006 777

Arkansas.............................................................................. 1,040 471 724 523

California ............................................................................ 10,631 2,934 15,835 11,677

Colorado.............................................................................. 1,463 599 1,602 1,326

Connecticut ....................................................................... 1,944 475 2,522 1,594

Delaware.............................................................................. 355 170 350 227

District of C olum bia......................................................... 1,499 138 1,197 616

Florida ................................................................................. 3,339 1,773 3,108 2,640

G eorgia................................................................................. 2,684 1,363 2,045 1,559

Hawaii................................................................................... 668 314 581 435

Idaho ................................................................................... 492 237 410 291

Illinois................................................................................... 6,909 2,711 6,091 3,808

In d ian a................................................................................. 2,835 979 3,183 2,324

Io w a ...................................................................................... 2,066 786 2,075 1,546

Kansas................................................................................... 1,707 528 1,608 1,172

Kentucky ............................................................................ 1,660 757 1,528 1,117

Louisiana ............................................................................ 1,792 566 1,609 1,022

Maine ................................................................................... 630 218 528 344

Maryland.............................................................................. 3,260 1,671 2,919 2,178

Massachusetts..................................................................... 4,518 1,183 5,809 3,857

Michigan.............................................................................. 4,635 1,869 5,426 3,853

Minnesota............................................................................ 2,509 791 2,906 1,989

Mississippi............................................................................ 1,117 527 938 675

Missouri .............................................................................. 2,421 862 3,039 2,181

M on tan a.............................................................................. 554 298 489 385

Nebraska.............................................................................. 913 218 919 624

Nevada ................................................................................. 272 182 136 84

New Hampshire.................................................................. 493 116 624 438

New Jersey .......................................................................... 4,337 1,824 3,863 2,600

New M e x ic o ....................................................................... 693 342 648 527

New Y o r k ............................................................................ 12,169 4,116 13,060 9,101

North Carolina ................................................................... 3,223 1,641 2,643 1,904

North D a k o ta ..................................................................... 384 141 434 382

O h io ..................................................................................... 6,196 2,341 6,282 3,925

Oklahom a............................................................................ 1,377 447 1,209 825

Oregon ................................................................................. 1,401 505 1,933 1,430

Pennsylvania....................................................................... 6,832 3,150 5,741 4,029

Rhode Island....................................................................... 522 180 810 590

South Carolina .................................................................. 1,627 825 922 631

South D a k o ta ..................................................................... 499 195 494 384

Tennessee............................................................................ 2,050 780 1,677 1,045

Texas ................................................................................... 6,021 2,912 4,894 3,423

Utah ..................................................................................... 1,033 527 700 474

V e rm o n t.............................................................................. 430 149 438 330

Virginia................................................................................. 3,449 1,584 2,992 2,199

Washington.......................... ............................................... 2,503 836 2,712 2,110

West Virginia....................................................................... 665 227 508 233

Wisconsin ............................................................................ 2,740 1,218 3,311 2,434

Wyoming............................................................................... 279 94 249 191

N O T E : 1 96 0 and 197 0 census data are not strictly com par- S O U R C E : U .S. Bureau o f the Census, Census o f Population:

able. See Notes, append ix tables F 2 and F 3. 1 9 7 0 , Characteristics o f the Population, V o l. 1, Parts 1 -5 0 , and

Census of Population: 1 9 6 0 .

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Table F-5. Library staff in colleges and universities, by State, fall 1971

State

Professional staff1 Nonprofessional staff

Number Percent Number Percent

United States .................................................. 21,183 100.0 26,523 100.0

A labam a.............................................................................. 267 1.3 284 1.1

|Alaska................................................................................... 25 .1 33 .1

A rizona................................................................................. 183 .9 285 1.1

Arkansas.............................................................................. 116 .6 117 .4

California ............................................................................ 2,023 9.5 3,168 11.9

Colorado.............................................................................. 236 1.1 364 1.4

Connecticut ....................................................................... 504 2.4 525 2.0

Delaware.............................................................................. 40 .2 70 .3

District of Colum bia......................................................... 249 1.2 211 .8

Florida ................................................................................. 546 2.6 721 2.7

Georgia................................................................................. 437 2.1 462 1.7

Haw aii................................................................................... 99 .5 115 .4

Idaho ................................................................................... 69 .3 114 .4

Illinois................................................................................... 1,124 5.3 1,349 5.1

In d ia n a ................................................................................. 513 2.4 622 2.4

Io w a ...................................................................................... 301 1.4 344 1.3

Kansas................................................................................... 278 1.3 246 .9

Kentucky ............................................................................ 317 1.5 353 1.3

Louisiana ................................. .......................................... 379 1.8 288 1.1

Maine ................................................................................... 103 .5 88 .3

Maryland............................................................................... 392 1.8 560 2.1

Massachusetts..................................................................... 1,062 5.0 1,371 5.2

Michigan.............................................................................. 761 3.6 990 3.7

Minnesota............................................................................ 408 1.9 381 1.4

Mississippi............................................................................ 228 1.1 141 .5

Missouri .............................................................................. 439 2.1 543 2.1

M on tan a.............................................................................. 79 .4 55 .2

Nebraska.............................................................................. 164 .8 184 .7

Nevada ................................................................................. 31 .1 65 .2

New Hampshire................................................................... 126 .6 182 .7

New Jersey.......................................................................... 545 2.6 765 2.9

New M e x ic o ....................................................................... 100 .5 119 .4

New Y o r k ............................................................................ 2,217 10.5 3,100 11.7

North Carolina ................................................................... 688 3.2 680 2.6

North D a k o ta ..................................................................... 68 .3 42 .2

O h io ...................................................................................... 848 4.0 1,173 4.4

O klahom a............................................................................ 199 .9 228 .9

Oregon ................................................................................. 247 1.2 338 1.3

Pennsylvania....................................................................... 1,248 5.9 1,571 5.9

Rhode Island....................................................................... 126 .6 173 .7

South Carolina ................................................................... 211 1.0 249 .9

South D a k o ta ..................................................................... 64 .3 64 .2

Tennessee............................................................................ 407 1.9 457 1.7

Texas ................................................................................... 993 4.7 1,318 5.0

U ta h ..................................................................................... 164 .8 192 .7

V erm o n t.............................................................................. 76 .4 127 .5

Virginia................................................................................. 435 2.0 549 2.1

Washington.......................................................................... 405 1.9 529 2.0

West Virginia........................................................................ 137 .6 147 .6

Wisconsin ............................................................................ 474 2.2 411 1.6

Wyoming.............................................................................. 32 .1 60 .2

1 Librarians and oth er professional staff members. T h e fall

1971 to ta l includes ap p ro x im a te ly 1 8 ,0 0 0 librarians and 3 ,0 0 0

other professionals.

N O T E : E m p lo ym e n t in fu ll-tim e equivalents.

S O U R C E : Library Statistics o f Colleges and Universities,

1971, Analytic Report, (Part C) (O ffice o f E du catio n, 1 9 7 3 ,

OE-74-1 1 4 1 7 ).

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Table F-6. Employment of librarians in public elementary and secondary schools, by State and

selected academic years

State

Academic year

1961-62 1963-64 1965-66 1967-68 1969-70

United States............................................. 19,603 23,769 28,965 33,838 39,790

Alabama ....................................................................... _ _ _ _ _

A la s k a ............................................................................ 20 29 52 62 61

A rizo n a ......................................................................... 249 258 377 408 ( M

Arkansas ....................................................................... 211 239 285 323 360

California....................................................................... 1,075 1,210 1,425 1,697 1,599

C olorado....................................................................... 229 264 332 373 454

Connecticut.................................................................. 175 232 271 297 388

D elaw are....................................................................... 76 82 95 120 133

District of Columbia .................................................. 24 23 89 133 156

Florida............................................................................ 1,071 1,289 1,587 1,844 2,057

Georgia .......................................................................... 507 650 1,111 1,485 1,701

H aw aii............................................................................ 119 137 171 203 213

Id ah o .............................................................................. 158 154 151 192 187

Illin o is............................................................................ 563 1,093 1,284 1,540 1,728

Indiana ......................................................................... 488 411 598 822 887

Iowa .............................................................................. 224 286 520 575 892

Kansas............................................................................ 414 452 511 681 771

Kentucky ....................................................................... 490 583 632 912 1,057

Louisiana....................................................................... 723 739 853 1,138 1,187

M aine.............................................................................. - 65 69 128 147

M aryland....................................................................... ( M 535 650 839 934

Massachusetts .............................................................. 342 355 328 586 714

Michigan ....................................................................... 1,137 1,269 768 1,172 1,862

Minnesota ..................................................................... 564 715 862 1,015 1,131

Mississippi..................................................................... 313 337 389 528 604

Missouri......................................................................... ( M ( M 546 609 845

Montana ....................................................................... 89 91 106 159 ( M

Nebraska....................................................................... 112 168 176 300 411

Nevada............................................................................ 39 43 83 123 116

New Hampshire........................................................... 14 29 41 63 98

New Jersey .................................................................. 524 653 808 ( M ( M

New M exico.................................................................. 162 158 181 240 240

New York ..................................................................... 2,293 2,710 2,705 3,438 3,538

North Carolina.............................................................. 963 1,253 1,621 ( M 1,776

North Dakota .............................................................. 135 32 73 120 173

Ohio .............................................................................. 819 933 1,089 1,412 1,687

Oklahoma ..................................................................... 103 215 203 293 352

Oregon............................................................................ 297 340 424 524 641

Pennsylvania ................................................................ 864 1,063 1,281 1,633 1,859

Rhode Island................................................................ 48 49 107 143 198

South Carolina.............................................................. 370 443 615 1,206 1,356

South Dakota .............................................................. - 92 124 138 153

Tennessee ..................................................................... 503 573 738 966 1,086

Texas .............................................................................. 1,214 1,392 1,670 1,653 1,795

Utah .............................................................................. 196 235 282 322 333

Vermont ....................................................................... 16 26 43 112 124

V irg in ia ......................................................................... ( M ( M 859 981 1,413

Washington .................................................................. 670 719 563 803 891

West V irg in ia................................................................ 93 185 207 218 239

Wisconsin....................................................................... 743 894 933 1,229 1,176

W yom ing....................................................................... 65 66 77 80 67

1 Data fo r librarians not rep orted separately. S O U R C E : U .S. O ffice of Edu catio n, Statistics of State

School Systems, various issues.

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

REGIONAL OFFICES

Region I

1603 JFK Federal Building

Government Center

Boston, Mass. 02203

Phone: 223-6762 (Area Code 617)

Region II

Suite 3400

1515 Broadway

New York, N.Y. 10036

Phone: 971-5405 (Area Code 212)

Region III

P.O. Box 13309

Philadelphia, Pa. 19101

Phone: 597-1154 (Area Code 215)

Region IV

Suite 540

1371 Peachtree St., NE.

Atlanta, Ga. 30309

Phone: 526-5418 (Area Code 404)

Region V

9th Floor, 230 South Dearborn St.

Chicago, III. 60604

Phone: 353-1880 (Area Code 312)

Region VI

1100 Commerce St., Rm. 6B7

Dallas, Tex. 75202

Phone: 749-3516 (Area Code 214)

Regions Vi! and VIII *

Federal Office Building

911 Walnut St., 15th Floor

Kansas City, Mo. 64106

Phone: 374-2481 (Area Code 816)

Regions IX and X **

450 Golden Gate Ave.

Box 36017

San Francisco, Calif. 94102

Phone: 556-4678 (Area Code 415)

Regions VII and VIII are serviced by Kansas City

Regions IX and X are serviced by San Francisco

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Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis