Figure 2 Student workers are supervised by a variety of library employees. Paraprofessional employees do 66 percent of the supervising, librarians 17 percent, managers 11 percent, students and others 1 percent. Today, because of budget cuts and the increase in computer technology, students are working in all departments of the library and doing all types of jobs. Besides the tasks already listed, some of the jobs students are doing are processing books, maintaining computers, supervising other students, assisting patrons with computer problems, answering reference questions, and processing document delivery requests and acquisition documents. This is not a complete list because students' job assignments change all the time.
Some libraries pay their students at the same salary range.
Other libraries craft the compensation to correspond to skill levels and technical aspects of the job. For example, students working in computer labs are paid more than those shelving books. Raises are determined in several ways depending on the institution. Performance, longevity, skills and level of responsibility are the main reasons for increasing salaries. For some libraries the school administration or the government determine salary policies.