Research Article
Changes in the Library Landscape
Regarding Visible Minority Librarians in Canada
Yanli Li
Business and Economics
Librarian
Wilfrid Laurier University
Library
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Email: yli@wlu.ca
Maha Kumaran
Librarian
Education and Music Library
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Email: Maha.Kumaran@usask.ca
Allan Cho
Community Engagement Librarian
(Program Services)
University of British Columbia
Library
Vancouver, British Columbia,
Canada
Email: allan.cho@ubc.ca
Valentina Ly
Research Librarian
University of Ottawa Library
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Email: vly@uottawa.ca
Suzanne Fernando
Senior Services Specialist
Toronto Public Library
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Email: sfernando@tpl.ca
Michael David Miller
Associate Librarian &
Liaison Librarian for French Literature, Economics and Gender Studies
McGill University Library
Montréal, Québec, Canada
Email: michael.david.miller@mcgill.ca
Received: 16 Apr. 2022 Accepted: 25 July 2022
2022 Li, Kumaran, Cho, Ly, Fernando, &
Miller.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons‐Attribution‐Noncommercial‐Share Alike License 4.0
International (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/),
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original work is properly attributed, not used for commercial
purposes, and, if transformed, the resulting work is redistributed under the
same or similar license to this one.
DOI: 10.18438/eblip30151
Abstract
Objective
–
As a follow-up to the first 2013 survey,
the Visible Minority Librarians of Canada (ViMLoC)
network conducted its second comprehensive survey in 2021. The 2021 survey gathered
detailed information about the demography, education, and employment of visible minority librarians (VMLs)
working in Canadian
institutions. Data from the 2021 survey and the analysis presented in
this paper help us better understand the current library landscape, presented
alongside findings from the 2013 survey. The research results will be helpful
for professional associations and library administrators to develop initiatives
to support VMLs.
Methods
–
Researchers
created
online survey questionnaires using Qualtrics XM in English and translated them
into French. We distributed the survey invitation through relevant library
association electronic mail lists and posted on ViMLoC’s
website, social networking platforms, and through their electronic mail list.
The survey asked if the participant was a visible minority librarian. If the response
was “No,” the survey closed. Respondents indicating "Yes" were asked
36 personal and professional questions of three types: multiple-choice, yes/no,
and open-ended questions.
Results
–
One
hundred and sixty-two VMLs completed the 2021 survey. Chinese remained the
largest ethnic identity, but their proportion in the survey decreased from 36%
in 2013 to 24% in 2021. 65% were aged between 26 and 45 years old. More than
half received their library degree during the 2010s. 89% completed their library
degree in Canada, a 5% increase from 2013. The majority of
librarians had graduated from University of Toronto (25%), followed closely by
University of British Columbia (23%), and Western University (22%). Only 3%
received their library degree from a library school outside North America. 34%
of librarians earned a second master’s degree and 5% had a PhD. 60% of
librarians had less than 11 years of experience. Nearly half worked in academic
libraries. Most were located in Ontario and British
Columbia. 69% of librarians were in non-management positions with 5% being
senior administrators. 25% reported a salary above $100,000. In terms of job
categories, the largest group worked in Reference/Information Services (45%),
followed by Instruction Services (32%), and as Liaison Librarians (31%). Those
working in Acquisitions/Collection Development saw the biggest jump from 1% in
2013 to 28% in 2021. 58% of librarians sought mentoring support, of whom 54%
participated in formal mentorship programs, and 48% had a visible minority
mentor.
Conclusion
– 35% more VMLs responded to
the 2021 survey compared to the 2013 survey. Changes occurred in ethnic
identity, generation, where VMLs earned a Master of Library and Information
Science (MLIS) or equivalent degree, library type, geographic location, and job
responsibilities. The 2021 survey also explored other aspects of the VMLs not covered
in the 2013 survey, such as librarian experience, salary, management positions,
and mentorship experience. The findings suggested that the professional
associations and library administrators would need collaborative efforts to
support VMLs.
Introduction
For decades there has been an awareness and recognition that the library
workforce does not reflect the diversity of the population in Canada (CAPAL,
2019; Jennings & Kinzer, 2022). The Visible Minority Librarians of Canada (ViMLoC) network formed in December 2011 to connect, engage,
and support racialized librarians in the country (ViMLoC,
n.d.). In 2013, on behalf of ViMLoC, Maha Kumaran and Heather Cai (2015) conducted the first
survey of its kind (referred to as the “2013 survey”) to gather statistical information
on Canadian visible minority librarians (VMLs). The 2013 survey assessed VMLs'
educational qualifications and employment details to help identify their needs,
challenges, and barriers within the profession. Besides this foundational
survey, there remains very little information of this kind on racialized
librarians across different institutions in Canada. When implementing the 2013
survey, ViMLoC had planned to repeat its survey to
better understand the changes in the library workforce over time. As such, the
authors designed and administered a redux survey in English and in French
between January and March 2021 (referred to as the “2021 survey”). The 2021
survey investigated two aspects: 1) similar demographic questions as the
previous survey; and 2) additional questions that sought to explore the
experiences of VMLs in the workplace.
This paper focuses on the results from 162 respondents of the 2021 survey
and compares results, where applicable, to the 2013 survey (Kumaran & Cai,
2015). For questions that are not covered in the 2013 survey, findings will be
compared to other studies as appropriate. This research will help VMLs
understand how their position in the library landscape has changed over the
years. Recommendations provided will help professional associations and library
administrators continue to develop initiatives to advocate for VMLs, which in
turn will contribute to the promotion of equity, diversity, and inclusion
(EDI).
Literature Review
The literature review for this article focuses on many topics in
librarianship such as racial diversity, lack of minorities in leadership
positions, salary inconsistencies, and mentorship. While the major focus of the literature
review is from a Canadian context, some papers from the United States are cited
to provide a broader context for racial diversity in librarianship. In the
literature, the terms “visible minority librarians”, “librarians of colour”, “racialized librarians”, and “ethnic minority
librarians” are one of many terms to refer to the population of interest (Kandiuk, 2014; Kumaran, 2012; Kumaran & Cai, 2015; Kung
et al., 2020). A scarcity of professional literature on and
by VMLs in a Canadian context continues to persist, even years after the
initial ViMLoC study, with a notable absence of
publications in French.
Demographics
The data on racialized library professionals has been sparse for much of
the history of Canadian libraries, although it has gradually increased. Kumaran
and Cai’s (2015) “Identifying the
Visible Minority Librarians in Canada: A National Survey” is one of the
most comprehensive studies of diversity in Canadian libraries. More research
from census surveys has been released since then. The Canadian Association of
Professional Academic Librarians (CAPAL) conducted censuses in 2016 and 2018.
Though limited to academic libraries in Canada, the CAPAL censuses built a
comprehensive demographic picture of the profession of academic librarianship
by collecting data about librarians working in colleges and university
libraries. In 2021, the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL)
(n.d.) released a Diversity and Inclusion Survey to gather baseline data on the
composition of personnel in 21 CARL libraries, to gauge employee feedback on
current EDI initiatives, and to establish a set of benchmarks against which to
evaluate and measure the impact of their EDI strategies and practices.
Recruitment and Retention
Beyond just the demographics of diverse librarians in the field is an
emerging body of literature about diversity within the scope of racism in
libraries. In Kung, Fraser, and Winn’s (2020) systematic review, the authors
found that despite a number of approaches used to
recruit minorities in academic libraries, the number of visible minorities in
the field has remained stagnant for decades. Their research indicated an
established body of literature that defined diversity, with race, ethnicity,
gender, and class identified as the most frequently used dimensions. The
authors found an increased number of publications on diversity in librarianship
in the 2000s, drawing more attention to the topic over the past twenty years
than prior to that time. In particular, residencies,
internships, and mentorship were the major interventions for recruitment and
retention, but residency programs existed in an American context, and not so
much within the Canadian context. The papers analyzed in the study mostly
focused on recruitment and retention for early career librarians, but less so
about advancement of more senior librarians.
Leadership
Although the literature is somewhat limited, there are three areas to
highlight from the literature that relate to our paper: leadership, mentorship,
and salary. The recently published CARL Diversity Census and Inclusion Survey
revealed that racialized library staff were underrepresented in senior leader
and other managerial roles (CCDI, 2022). Kumaran’s (2012) Leadership in Libraries focused on ethnic-minority librarians and
is one of the more comprehensive texts targeting strategies for success.
Written primarily for first-generation immigrant librarians, Kumaran explored
the major cultural differences affecting leadership from mainly Asian and
African cultures in the context of White mainstream libraries, including
cultural adaptation and language issues. Hines’ (2019) research focused on
academic librarians and further explored how current leadership development
opportunities reinforced the existing biased structures within libraries. Using
the lens of critical race theory, Hines offered tools to better describe and
understand the problems so that they could be addressed meaningfully, chiefly
through a restructuring of both the mechanics and the curriculum of leadership
development training.
Salaries
Salary has been understudied for library professionals in Canada, not to
mention for VMLs. While CAPAL’s 2016 and 2018 censuses of academic librarians
gathered visible minority status, ethnic identity, and salary information,
their summary reports did not include any analysis of the relationship between
salary and race (CAPAL, 2016; CAPAL, 2019). The survey conducted by the
Canadian Association of University Teachers (2019) provided average academic
librarian salaries by gender, age, region, and institution, but not by race.
The 8Rs Practitioner Survey in 2014 had microdata on salary and visible
minority status for CARL librarians (Delong et al., 2015a). Using a subset of
those microdata, Li (2021) used multiple regression models to study
demographic, job, and labour market factors that
affected CARL librarians’ salaries. A significant pay gap was identified
between VMLs and non-VMLs.
Mentorship
Mentorship has proven to be one of the most significant factors
contributing to a librarian’s career success in Canada (Harrington &
Marshall, 2014; Law, 2001; Oud, 2008). Mentoring can be provided in formal and
informal formats (Damasco & Hodges, 2012;
Mackinnon & Shepley, 2014). Particularly, for VMLs who face challenges
entering the Canadian job market and adapting to the workplace climate and
culture, getting mentoring support is essential (Kandiuk,
2014; Kumaran & Cai, 2015). Kung, Fraser, and Winn (2020) found that
mentorship was used at academic libraries for retention of VMLs, but there was
an overall lack of focus on mid- to late- career VMLs.
As mentioned in Kumaran & Cai’s (2015) study, this absence of
professional literature by minority librarians could have many causes:
[librarians] are in positions that do not require them to
publish; lack of training in writing academic papers, especially if they are
first generation minority librarians; lack of support for writing for
publication; lack of time or funding; not having a dedicated minority-focused
Canadian library journal that allows them to voice their thoughts; and perhaps
fear of bringing attention to themselves” (p.111)
Being in a position that does not require publication is particularly true
for Quebec academic librarians in Francophone colleges and universities where
they do not yet hold academic status or an equivalent/parallel to academic
status. This does not mean discussions like these are not happening in French;
they simply are not being distributed via professional and academic
publications. There is also a gap in the literature where librarians are not
writing about minority librarians. Based on data from the 2021 survey focusing
on VMLs, this research will contribute to filling the gap. A future study on
the motivations for such lack of writing could be extremely beneficial to the
current body of Canadian minority librarian research.
Methods
Building on the 12 questions from the 2013 survey, wording for seven of the
original questions was updated for clarity or to reflect changes to the
profession, and 24 additional questions were added to the 2021 survey. An
online survey questionnaire was created using Qualtrics XM (see Appendix). The
entire survey was sent to the 2021 survey research team and ViMLoC
committee members for a pilot test before they were released to the target
audience. After ethics approvals from the authors’ respective institutions, the
English language survey was made available between January 21, 2021 and
February 28, 2021. It was a nation-wide survey with participation from VMLs
working in Canadian institutions. The online survey invitation was sent to VMLs
through relevant library association electronic mail lists, such as CARL,
CAPAL, and provincial library associations. The invitation was also posted on ViMLoC’s website, three social networking platforms
(Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn), and through their electronic mail list. When
the English survey was distributed, the research team received inquiries about
the availability of a French version of the survey. To help get information
from French racialized minority librarians and to fill the gap in the work of ViMLoC, the research team decided to do a French version.
One team member translated the English survey to French and circulated it
amongst Québecois library associations and other
networks between March 1, 2021 and March 31, 2021.
The 2021 survey provided a definition of visible minorities from the
Canadian Employment Equity Act: “Persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who
are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour”
(Government of Canada, 2021). The
participants were asked to identify if they were a visible minority librarian.
If the response was “No,” the survey closed. The rest of the survey consisted
of personal and professional questions of three types: multiple-choice, yes/no,
and open-ended. Specifically, there were six questions about demographic
information, 10 questions about education, and 20 questions about employment.
For details of the questionnaire, see the Appendix. For the
purpose of this research, we analyzed microdata on these librarians. We
conducted cross-tabulation and chi-square analyses for in-depth examinations of
the relationships between some variables, including employment type and career
stage, type of mentorship and perceptions of the helpfulness of mentorship in
librarians’ career development, and the visible minority status of mentors and
perceptions of their helpfulness for mentees.
Results and Discussion
Of the 294 librarians that attempted the 2021 survey, 162 respondents who
identified themselves as VMLs were permitted to complete it, representing a 35%
increase from the 120 participants in the 2013 survey. There were 138
librarians who completed the English survey and 24 who completed the French
survey.
Demography
The questions in this section focused on ethnic identity, generation
status, disability status, gender, and age.
Ethnic Identity
Respondents were asked to self-identify their ethnic
group. Without accounting for mixed races, the largest ethnic identity
represented among the 159 respondents was Chinese (24%, n=38), compared to 36%
(n=43) in the 2013 survey, followed by South Asian (15%, n=24), and Black (12%,
n=19) (Figure 1). The percentage of Black librarians remained unchanged between
the two surveys at 12%. The proportions of Latin American, Korean, Filipino,
Southeast Asian, and Arab librarians increased slightly, whereas those of South
Asian, West Asian, and Japanese librarians decreased slightly. In 2021 there
were 13% (n=21) respondents that identified as a mixture of White and visible
minorities and 9% (n=14) that identified as multiple visible minorities.
Generation Status
Participants were asked about their generation status in Canada. First
generation visible minorities refer to those who were born elsewhere and moved
to Canada at some point during their lives. Second generation visible
minorities are those who were born in Canada to one or more immigrant parents.
Third generation or more refers to visible minorities who were born in Canada,
with both parents who were also born in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2021). As
shown in Figure 2, of the 157 respondents in the 2021 survey, 56% (n=88)
identified themselves as first generation, compared to 63% (n=76) in 2013
(Kumaran & Cai, 2015, p.113). 40% (n=63) identified themselves as second
generation, compared to 28% (n=33) from the 2013 survey (28%, n=33). The
portion of third generation or more librarians was 4% (n=6) in 2021 versus 9%
(n=11) in 2013.
Figure 1
Ethnic identity.
Figure 2
Generation status.
Disability Status, Gender, and Age
Of the 159 respondents in the 2021 survey, 8% (n=12) identified themselves
as a person with a disability. Ten respondents provided details of their
disability conditions that included physical and mental disabilities, and
chronic illnesses. Librarians were predominantly female (81%, n=130) with 16%
(n=25) males, and nearly 4% (n=6) had other gender identifications or preferred
not to answer. As shown in Figure 3, those aged 31-35 accounted for 22% (n=36),
followed by 36-40 (16%, n=26), 41-45 (15%, n=25), and 46-50 (13%, n=21). Only
10% (n=16) were over the age of 55, which suggested that the respondents were
younger than the overall visible minority workforce, of which 15% were over the
age of 55 (Statistics Canada, 2017).
Figure 3
Age group.
Education
Library Degree
The questions in this section focused on when and where
participants received their professional library degree – Master of Library
& Information Science (MLIS) or equivalent – and whether
or not it was American Library Association (ALA) accredited. Figure 4
shows that more than half (53%, n=86) received their library degree during the
2010s, doubling the percentage of those receiving their library degree during
the 2000s (24%, n=39). Seven librarians received their degree before the 1990s
and eight librarians received it after 2019.
When asked where they completed their library degree, 89%
(n=142) of the 160 respondents indicated “from an ALA-accredited Canadian
library school,” as compared to 84% (n=101) in 2013 (Kumaran & Cai, 2015,
p.113). 5% (n=8) received their library degree from an ALA-accredited American
library school. Only 3% (n=4) mentioned getting their library professional
degrees from outside North America (Figure 5). This small proportion could be
because ALA accreditation has been an impediment for librarians with foreign
credentials (Taleban, 2016). Many immigrant
librarians received an additional library degree through an ALA-accredited
program after moving to Canada.
For the 142 respondents who completed their library
degree in Canada, they were asked to indicate the university that granted their
library degree. The top three institutions were the University of Toronto (25%,
n=35), the University of British Columbia (23%, n=32), and Western University
(22%, n=31) (Figure 6). In comparison, in the 2013 survey, of the 101
respondents, about 15% received their library degree from the University of
Toronto, almost 40% from the University of British Columbia, and 31% from
Western University (Kumaran & Cai, 2015, p.113). It is worth noting that
14% (n=20) of the respondents graduated from Université de Montréal. This data
was not collected in 2013 when the survey was not conducted in French.
Seventeen respondents provided the name of the country
outside of Canada where they received their library education. Almost half (n=8)
indicated the United States; other countries mentioned included Brazil, France,
Ghana, India, Iran, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. Of the nine respondents
who had an international non-ALA accredited library degree, four stated that
their degree was recognized for their current employment at public or academic
libraries, whereas the other five had different experiences. Two librarians
felt compelled to complete a Canadian MLIS degree to secure a job; another
received a library technician diploma in Canada and ended up with librarian
status after years of doing non-librarian jobs. The other two did not get their
foreign degree recognized and were working in a non-library setting or in a
position relying more on their non-librarian experience and skills.
Figure 4
Year library degree was received.
Figure 5
Where library degree was received.
Figure 6
University where library degree was received.
Additional Education
In addition to an MLIS degree, the respondents have attained professional
degrees, additional certificates, diplomas, or advanced degrees. In Table 1, of
the 152 respondents, 21% (n=32) earned professional degrees, and 34% (n=51) had
their second master’s degree. This finding was close to the CARL’s 8Rs Redux
Survey which reported 32% with a second master’s (Delong et al., 2015b, p.100)
but lower than 57% in the 2018 CAPAL Census (CAPAL, 2019, p.45). 2% (n=3) of
the respondents in the 2021 survey reported having a third Master’s degree, as
compared to 3% in the 2018 CAPAL Census. 5% (n=8) held a PhD which was in line
with the CARL’s 8Rs Redux Survey result but much lower than nearly 11% among
academic librarians in the 2018 CAPAL Census. 38% (n=58) indicated they had
additional degrees, certificates or diplomas,
specifically 34 bachelor’s degrees, 25 certificates, seven diplomas, and 10
other education attainments. These research results suggested evidence of a
trend of increasing professional and graduate education among librarians. This
may be attributable to an increased demand for librarians to perform specialist
roles that require additional credentials after they have entered the librarian
profession. As revealed in Ferguson (2016), 26% of the 800 academic library job
postings preferred a second advanced degree and 7% required one. The most
frequent functional areas asking for advanced subject knowledge were subject
specialists. Librarians pursuing additional education may also be due to
personal interest or the possibility of support from their current institutions
with funds and time for studying. It is also possible that some VMLs have
earned non-MLIS degrees in their home country before pursuing librarianship in
Canada, or that they feel the need to upgrade themselves with additional
qualifications to sustain their professional positions here in Canada.
Table 1
Non-MLIS Education Attained
|
Education |
Count |
Percentage |
|
Professional degree |
32 |
21% |
|
Second master’s degree |
51 |
34% |
|
Third master’s degree |
3 |
2% |
|
PhD |
8 |
5% |
|
Additional degrees, certificates, or diplomas |
58 |
38% |
Employment
The questions in this section focused on librarian experience, library
type, geographic distribution, type of employment, leadership positions,
salary, job categories, and mentorship experience. The librarians were also
surveyed about their experiences in workplaces such as microaggressions and job
satisfaction. These questions deserve an in-depth study and will be published
in a separate paper.
Librarian Experience
Librarians with less than six years of experience made up 35% (n=56),
followed by 6-10 years (25%, n=41), 11-15 years (13%, n=21), 16-20 years (12%,
n=20), and 21-25 years of experience (9%, n=14). 6% (n=9) have been a librarian
for more than 25 years (Figure 7).
Figure 7
Librarian experience.
Library Type
From 2013 to 2021, the most noticeable change was the increase of
respondents working in academic libraries. As shown in Figure 8, 48% (n=78) of
VMLs in the 2021 survey identified themselves as working in academic libraries,
compared to 38% (n=45) in the 2013 survey. Conversely, the spread of
respondents employed at public, special, and school libraries was lower than
previously captured. The increase of respondents from academic libraries could
be due to the retirement wave hitting academic librarianship. The CARL 8Rs 2014
Practitioner Survey revealed that 34% of all CARL librarians expected to retire
within the next 10 years (Delong et al., 2015b, p.47). Many studies have
examined succession planning at Canadian academic libraries when bracing the
reality of baby boomer librarians retiring (Guise, 2015; Harrington &
Marshall, 2014; Popowich, 2011). Kumaran (2015)
pointed out the importance of including VMLs in the succession planning
process. Another explanation for the increased academic librarian participation
could be due to the more effective application of policies towards EDI in
universities in recent years. In addition to having general employment equity
policies in place, some universities have set goals to increase hiring of
visible minority staff (University of Victoria, 2015). As an example of
professional library associations, CARL (2020) has realized the significance of
EDI in academic libraries and published a guide to aid recruitment and
retention of diverse talent. In such contexts, visible minorities may have more
opportunities to enter academic librarianship compared to nearly a decade ago.
It is noteworthy that studies on librarian turnover at non-academic libraries
are very limited. Further research is needed to explore how employment of VMLs
has changed at those libraries and how that change may have affected employment
at academic libraries.
Figure 8
Employment by library type.
Geographic Distribution
As in the 2013 survey, VMLs were widely spread across
Canada, with respondents from Prince Edward Island and Yukon participating in
the 2021 survey (Table 2). A vast majority of respondents continued to be in
British Columbia and Ontario; however, British Columbia comprised 22% (n=35) of
these employed librarians, compared to 40% (n=48) in 2013, whereas respondents
from Ontario accounted for 45% (n=72) in 2021 versus 27% (n=32) in 2013. Due to
adding a French iteration of the survey in 2021, librarians in Quebec made up
14% (n=22), compared to only 4% (n=5) in 2013. The geographic distribution of
VMLs reflected similar patterns of visible minority populations across Canada.
The 2016 Census data showed that Ontario, British Columbia, and Quebec were the
top three most populous provinces for visible minorities (Statistics Canada,
2018b).
Table 2
Geographic Distribution
|
Province or Territory |
2013 ViMLoC Survey |
2021 ViMLoC Survey |
|
Alberta |
8% (n=10) |
7% (n=11) |
|
British Columbia |
40% (n=48) |
22% (n=35) |
|
Manitoba |
6% (n=7) |
2% (n=3) |
|
New Brunswick |
2% (n=2) |
1% (n=1) |
|
Newfoundland and Labrador |
1% (n=1) |
1% (n=2) |
|
Nova Scotia |
5% (n=6) |
3% (n=4) |
|
Nunavut |
1% (n=1) |
0% (n=0) |
|
Ontario |
27% (n=32) |
45% (n=72) |
|
Prince Edward Island |
0% (n=0) |
1% (n=1) |
|
Quebec |
4% (n=5) |
14% (n=22) |
|
Saskatchewan |
6% (n=7) |
3% (n=4) |
|
Yukon |
0% (n=0) |
2% (n=3) |
Type of Employment
In 2021, an overwhelming 85% (n=137) of respondents were working in
permanent positions and 11% (n=18) were in temporary positions (e.g., contract,
limited-term). A larger proportion of librarians were
working full-time (30 or more hours/week) (90%, n=143 in 2021 versus 82%, n=99
in 2013). These findings seemed to be more positive compared with other studies
which reported that precarious employment was on the rise in libraries
(Henninger et al., 2019; O’Reilly, 2015; The Canadian Press, 2016) and that
minorities were disproportionately affected (CUPE, 2017). Henninger et al.
(2020) analyzed job postings and found that employees with managerial
positions, advanced degrees, or more experience, and positions requiring an
MLIS were least likely to be precarious. In the 2021 survey, a vast majority of
the librarians had an MLIS or equivalent, one of five librarians had
professional degrees, and two of five librarians had at least two graduate
degrees. Also, 65% had more than five years of experience as a librarian. These
factors might have helped them secure stable jobs. Given the small sample size
of this survey, it might also be possible that those working on part-time or
temporary jobs were not participating in the 2021 survey; hence their
proportions might be underestimated.
This research further examined employment of VMLs by career stage. Career
stage consists of early career, mid-career, and late career. However, the
concept of each career stage is open to interpretation. It is either based on
year of graduation from an MLIS program (Delong et al., 2015b), or post-MLIS
experience in a librarian role and the number of years the librarian has worked
for their current employer (Tucker, 2008). The data collected in the 2021
survey did not align with these studies. For instance, the survey asked about
years of librarian experience, but did not ask how many years the librarians
worked for their current employer. Therefore, it was not possible to analyze
the career stage as defined in the above studies. Instead, the authors referred
to Sullivan (2011) and Morison et al. (2006), who defined career stage by age.
This research broke down the sample into three subgroups: early career (ages
26-35, 34%, n=56), mid-career (ages 36-55, 56%, n=89) and late career (ages
55+, 10%, n=16). As illustrated in Figure 9, of all librarians in permanent or
full-time positions, around one third were at early career stage and over half
were at mid-career stage. On the contrary, early career librarians comprised
over a half of those in temporary or part-time positions. Early career minority
librarians seemed to have more challenges securing a full-time or permanent job
than their mid-career peers, as manifested through the experiences of some new
librarians (Ford, 2021; Lee, 2020). However, the results from a chi-square
analysis of this research indicated that there was no statistically significant
relationship between career stage and full-time or part-time employment, X2 (4, N = 159) = 3.86, p = .426, or between career stage and permanency of the employment,
X2 (4, N = 161) = 5.22, p = .266.
Figure 9
Employment by career stage.
Leadership Positions
In terms of their current position, 69% (n=110) of the 160 respondents were
not in managerial positions. An equal share (13%, n=21 each) were supervisors
and middle managers (e.g., branch head, department head). Only 5% (n=8) were
senior administrators (e.g., head/chief librarian, director, or
deputy/assistant head, chief, director). In comparison, CARL’s 2021 survey
revealed 14.4% of senior leaders identified as racialized, compared to 20% of
all library staff (CCDI, 2022). Furthermore, 8Rs 2014 Practitioner Survey
reported that 55% of CARL librarians were not in management positions and 15%
were senior administrators (Delong et al., 2015b, p.18). Participants expressed
their frustration by lack of “racial diversity among librarians” and being
“flat out dismissed” for expressing such concerns. In addition, they were
accused of being frustrated that they could not find jobs. In one situation
where the respondent wrote:
I was the most qualified and experienced person applying
to run my library and acted successfully in the job for over 8 months, I failed
the standardized leadership tests and was screened out of the competition and a
non-MLIS candidate with no library experience was placed in the leadership
positions.
The findings from this research supported that VMLs were less likely to be
working in senior administration positions for various reasons including lack
of leadership training. Respondents mentioned attending mentorship programs
such as the ARL Leadership and Career Development Program (ARL. n.d.-a), Certificate program on Public Library
Leadership (Ontario Library Service, n.d.), and Public Library InterLINK (n.d.)’s LLEAD program, all of which have a
focus on developing leadership skills. It should be noted that there are no
leadership programs that aim to develop minority library leaders in Canada.
Some libraries have tailored leadership programs for their employees; however, none
focuses on visible minority employees and their leadership skills development.
Salary
Respondents were asked about their gross yearly salary. About 17% (n=26) of
the 158 respondents reported a salary at $60,000 or less, 55% (n=86) reported a
salary between $60,001 and $100,000, 25% (n=40) reported a salary above
$100,000, and 4% (n=6) preferred not to answer. According to the 2016 Canadian
Census data (Statistics Canada, 2018a), the median employment income for VMLs
was $59,710, meaning half of the total 1,055 VMLs had an employment income
above this amount, and half had an employment income below this amount. Hence,
using $60,000 as an approximate benchmark, 80% of VMLs in the 2021survey earned
more than this amount compared to 50% of the general visible minority librarian
population in the 2016 Census.
Job Categories
Respondents were asked to select as many of the job categories that match
their current job responsibilities. As shown in Figure 10, the majority worked
in Reference/Information Services (45%, n=72), followed by Instruction Services
(32%, n=52), and as Liaison Librarians (31%, n=50). Their proportions were 38%
(n=46), 14% (n=17), and 17% (n=20), respectively, in 2013. Those working in
Acquisitions/Collection Development accounted for 28% (n=45) in 2021 compared
to only 1% (n=1) in 2013. The rate of librarians working in
Cataloguing/Metadata Management was 7% (n=12) in 2021 versus 11% (n=13) in
2013. There were no changes in the proportions of respondents working in
Automation/Systems/IT Services, Licensing, and School/Teacher Librarian jobs.
Moreover, additional job categories were added in the 2021 survey to reflect
recent trends in librarian responsibilities, including Public Services (29%,
n=47), Research Services (27%, n=43), User Experience (14%, n=23), Project
Management (12%, n=19), Data Management and Curation (8%, n=13), Bibliometrics
(7%, n=11), Copyright (7%, n=12), and Scholarly Communications (6%, n=10).
Mentorship Experience
In the 2021 survey, of the 160 respondents, 58% (n=93)
indicated that they sought support from mentors throughout their library
career. 54% (n=50) of those respondents participated in formal mentorship
programs and nearly half (48%, n=45) had a visible minority mentor. These
figures were much higher than those reported in Kandiuk’s
(2014) study, which found that 32% (n=18) of VMLs had been mentored, with only
22% (n=4) of them engaged in a formal mentoring relationship, and the same
number had a visible minority mentor.
Forty-three respondents participated in formal mentorship
programs that were offered in workplaces (n=6), library schools (n=7), or
professional associations (n=30). Thirteen librarians mentioned participating
in more than one formal mentorship program. The most cited professional
association offering a mentorship program was ViMLoC
(n=15), followed by Ontario Library Association (n=8), British Columbia Library
Association (n=6), among others.
Figure 10
Job categories.
When asked how mentors were helpful in supporting them,
26% (n=24) of the respondents indicated “extremely helpful”, 32% (n=30)
indicated “very helpful”, 30% (n=28) indicated “moderately helpful”, 9% (n=8)
indicated “slightly helpful”, and 3% (n=3) indicated “not at all helpful”. We
further separately examined the librarians who engaged in formal and informal
mentorship (Table 3). Respondents engaging in formal and informal mentorship
were nearly equivalent in their rates of feeling the mentors were extremely
helpful, very helpful, and moderately helpful. There was a divergence of more
negative mentorship experiences from formal mentorship programs. 6% of the
librarians in formal mentorship did not find their mentor helpful at all,
whereas no respondents in informal mentorship thought so. These findings
reflected those of Damasco and Hodges (2012), where
academic librarians of colour were more likely to
cite informal mentoring as an effective form of professional development than
formal mentoring and perceive formal mentoring as an ineffective form compared
to informal mentorship (p. 293). We performed a chi-square test to further
examine the relationship between the type of mentorship and participants’
perception of the helpfulness of mentorship. The relation was not statistically
significant, X2 (4, N = 93) = 3.44, P = .488 (Table 3).
We thought it would also be useful to examine whether
these librarians perceived the value of mentorship differently if their mentor
was a visible minority. In Table 3, the librarians who had a visible minority
mentor were more likely to feel that their mentors were extremely helpful (33%
versus 19%) or very helpful (38% versus 27%) as compared to those who had a
non-visible minority mentor. Conversely, the librarians who did not have a
visible minority mentor were more likely to find their mentors were moderately
helpful (40% versus 20%), slightly helpful (10% versus 7%), and not helpful at
all (4% versus 2%). However, the chi-square test indicated that there was no
significant relationship between visible minority status of the mentor and
mentees’ perception of the helpfulness of mentorship, X2 (4, N = 93)
= 6.35, P = .175 (Table 3).
Table 3
Perceptions of the Helpfulness of Mentorship
|
Type of
Mentorship |
Extremely helpful |
Very helpful |
Moderately helpful |
Slightly helpful |
Not helpful |
Chi-square Value |
P value |
|
Formal mentorship |
13 (26%) |
16 (32%) |
15 (30%) |
3 (6%) |
3 (6%) |
3.44 |
0.488 |
|
Informal
mentorship |
11 (26%) |
14 (33%) |
13 (30%) |
5 (12%) |
0 (0%) |
||
|
Minority mentor |
15 (33%) |
17 (38%) |
9 (20%) |
3 (7%) |
1 (2%) |
6.35 |
0.175 |
|
Nonminority mentor |
9 (19%) |
13 (27%) |
19 (40%) |
5 (10%) |
2 (4%) |
There could be a couple of reasons why there was no difference in their
perceptions between having or not having a minority mentor, for example, lack
of visible minorities in managerial or senior administrative roles, or lack of
public knowledge of their racial identity. However, two of the respondents
highlighted the importance of having a minority mentor:
Mentors are so important for
BIPOC [Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour]
librarians. Most of the things I know about librarianship, about the unsaid
things I should know (knowledge sharing) or how to navigate this field, come
from wonderful and talented BIPOC librarians, who deserve their flowers and
increased pay! Honestly, I think mentors are the primary reason most of us
early career BIPOC librarians stay in this field. So, please continue the
program or create a space to informally or formally interact
more. BIPOC/visible minority librarians are often alone at their jobs
and having support from others is uplifting and empowering.
In formal mentorship programs,
I have not had a mentor from a visible minority group. However, I've had
informal mentors who are people of colour who have
been generous with sharing their experience and perspectives about issues like
feeling tokenized, moving to a new city that is less diverse, the dynamics of
EDI committees, and the lack of movement on issues around social justice
(racial and otherwise) in libraries.
Findings and Recommendations
In light of the
research findings, the authors would like to make the following recommendations
from the perspectives of the Canadian library profession, library
administrators, VMLs, and ViMLoC network.
Canadian Library Profession
There is fluctuation in which groups of racialized
minority librarians increased or decreased with the two surveys. The change in
numbers may be connected to the immigration patterns in Canada. However, the
truth remains that the VMLs continue to grow in numbers and are looking for
opportunities. Although many are still in career exploration stages, 38% of
librarians have 6-15 years of work experience. However, 67% of first generation
or immigrant librarians and 73% of second generation librarians are not in
leadership positions. Divided by ethnicity, 64% of Black librarians, 79% of
Chinese librarians, and 58% of South Asian librarians are not in such
leadership roles.
Recommendation: Regarding VMLs, there is a huge market
that the Canadian library profession has left untapped for future leadership
positions, thus depriving the profession of diverse talents and perspectives.
The library profession would benefit from a program that helps VMLs visualize
themselves in leadership positions and succeed in their leadership undertaking.
As Hines (2019) mentioned, leadership programs continue
to reinforce biased structures. Most Canadian librarians attend leadership
programs from the United States such as the Leadership and Career Development
Program or the Mosaic program (ARL, n.d.-a., n.d.-b). While these programs are
immensely helpful, they have an American focus; costs are in American dollars
and there is a requirement to travel to the United States. Due to costs and
travel needs outside of Canada, this could be an impediment to VMLs in their
leadership development.
Recommendation: The Canadian library profession needs a
library leadership program that focuses on racialized minorities, offered in
both English and French and through a hybrid model that includes both online
and in-person formats.
There are non-ALA accredited librarians who are already
in Canada waiting to gain employment. However, there are no pathways for them
to assess their education and experience and compete equally in the job market.
Canadian librarianship could design pathways to evaluate international
librarian credentials through programs such as the International Qualifications
Assessment Service (Government of Alberta, 2022), or other similar assessment
bodies within their campuses. For example, the British Columbia Institute of
Technology (n.d.) has an International Credential Evaluation Service dedicated
to their employees and students. Canadian librarianship can work with the
Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (n.d.) or the
Alliance of Credential Evaluation Services of Canada (n.d.) to create a
standardized evaluation process for library courses and programs. Certificate
programs to upgrade skills could be an option, however, this would still be a
cost impediment for many first-generation immigrant librarians who already have
a degree, experience, and are new to the country. Universities that offer
professional library degrees could consider offering certification programs to
these librarians so they do not have to pay the full fees to receive a degree.
The Canadian library profession, library associations, and academic library
standards on hiring should mandate that such programs, along with previous
experience in the profession be accepted for hiring these librarians as equals
to ALA-accredited librarians. Their additional master’s and doctorate degrees
also need to be taken into consideration.
Recommendation: Canadian librarianship could design
pathways to assess, and if necessary, upgrade international librarian
qualifications.
Library Administrators
As the results of this research show, there is a conspicuous lack of
racialized librarians in management or leadership positions. As one respondent
pointed out, participants were tested for leadership skills through a test. The
respondent considered this “a barrier to racialized employees…seeking higher
leadership opportunities,” but their feedback of the issue of equity in such
tests were not addressed by their administration. More than one respondent
mentioned feeling isolated or experiencing racial microaggressions in their
current positions and were disappointed that their concerns were not being
heard by their leadership. Library administrators could encourage and coach
these minority librarians about their career goals to include them in the
succession plan and groom them for future leadership opportunities. This would
also be one way for library administrators to sustain their EDI commitments and
strengthen their retention practices.
Recommendation: All library leaders need to undergo ongoing training
through their institutions, library and national
associations, so they understand the perspectives of minority librarians.
Leaders should also consider mentoring and preparing BIPOC in their
institutions for future leadership positions.
The survey result shows that four of the nine participants with
international non-ALA accredited degrees are currently employed. This may
suggest that there exists a possibility for Canadian libraries to recognize
non-ALA accredited degrees. In fact, many American academic library job
postings are broadening the eligibility criteria by changing the education
requirements from ALA accredited degrees to be more inclusive of foreign LIS
education (Burtis et al., 2010). In CARL’s guidelines
on hiring and retaining diverse talent, one of the recommended strategies is to
“consider broadening the eligibility for librarian positions to be inclusive of
LIS accredited degrees beyond ALA-accreditation” (CARL, 2020). Another
important question to be considered is whether the work experience of these
four librarians would benefit their future career paths in librarianship. Would
their experience give them an equal standing along with librarians who have an
ALA-accredited degree, or are they destined to stay in their current positions
and status for fear of losing what they currently have?
Recommendation: Library administrators who are not hiring librarians with
non-ALA accredited degrees could examine the reasons why and the processes of how
some libraries are able to do so.
Visible Minority Librarians
An increased number of first
generation librarians responded to the 2021 survey than the previous one. For
visible minorities who want to enter Canadian librarianship, it is important to
consider additional training or knowledge to avoid culture shock while working
in Canadian libraries. It is essential to know how to work with patrons, their
rights, the design and delivery of library policies, and their impact on
practice and patrons. It is important to understand the structure of libraries.
For example, what does it mean when a library is considered regional versus
public, or college versus university, especially in terms of its structure,
governance, and funding? It is also important for these librarians to find a
network to get support in their job search, in creating their resumes or
building CVs, and practice interview skills with trusted colleagues.
Additionally, librarians can take advantage of many learning opportunities
outside of library schools. For example, the Library Juice Academy (2022)
offers regular courses on many current and relevant library topics. Librarians
can also join many library association listservs to receive updated information
on library happenings. If small costs are not an issue, librarians can join
library associations for a small membership fee. Such membership may provide
access to knowledge resources, webinars, and other informational materials,
which may be valuable when preparing for interviews.
Recommendation: VMLs need to be proactive in finding learning, network, and
job opportunities in Canada.
ViMLoC
The 2013 survey identified the importance of mentoring
support for visible minority librarians. Thereafter, ViMLoC
developed its own mentorship program and ran the first session during
2013-2014. This program was reinitiated in 2018 and continued to run on an
annual basis. The findings from the 2021 survey showed that 35% (n=15) of the
librarians participated in the ViMLoC mentorship
program and two out of three librarians found the mentors were extremely
helpful or very helpful. ViMLoC can support VMLs through
other efforts, for example, organizing panel presentations that host minority
library leaders and highlight their pathways into leadership. Such
presentations will empower VMLs and help them design their own career pathways.
ViMLoC can collaborate with other associations as
well. While ViMLoC currently does not have the
resources to host conferences similar to the Joint
Conference of Librarians of Color (2022), it could connect with Canadian Health
Libraries Association (CHLA), CAPAL, Congrès des profesionnel·le·s de l’information
(CPI) or Ontario Library Association (OLA) conferences and add a minority
focused session/stream in those conferences. The Canadian Journal of Academic
Librarianship (2019) hosted a special issue with a focus on diversity. In addition,
ViMLoC has partnered with University of Toronto
Libraries to organize the Navigating the Field workshop series targeted for
those new to applying for academic jobs (ViMLoC,
2021).
Recommendation: ViMLoC should
continue to implement the mentorship program and pursue more collaborative
opportunities to support VMLs.
Limitations
First, 162 visible minority librarians completed the 2021 survey,
representing approximately 15% of the visible minority librarian population
(1,055) based on the 2016 Census data (Statistics Canada, 2018a). This means
that the findings from this research may not provide a complete picture of the
visible minority librarian population in Canada.
Second, data collection errors might occur in the survey and affect analysis
results in this research. Representation data for members of visible minorities
was based on voluntary self-identification. The information on librarians was
self-reported such as disability status, salary, years of librarian experience,
and respondent’s perception of how mentorship was helpful. Regarding gender identity, the 2021 survey
used the binary biological terms, male/female, which are normally used for
gender and not interchangeable with gender identity. In addition, transgender
identity was recorded separately from male/female identity, which might have
resulted in reporting errors.
Third, there is a limitation of using age to assume a career stage. Some
people pursue librarianship as a second or third career. Hence, they may be
older in age, but are still in an early career stage. Someone may enter the
librarian profession at a very early age, and possibly reach a mid-career stage
before the age of 36.
Finally, the 2021 survey comprised 36 questions, three times the number of
questions covered in the 2013 survey. Wording for seven out of 12 original
questions were
updated when it was determined that they would result in an improvement to the
data. However, this limited the authors’ ability to compare results between the
two surveys.
Conclusion
With more visible minority librarians participating in the 2021 survey,
this larger snapshot provided a more robust and updated perspective of
potential changes in the population compared to the 2013 survey. Differences
were identified with regard to ethnic identity,
generation classification, where their MLIS or equivalent degree was received,
type of library, geographic location, and job responsibilities. The 2021 survey
also explored other aspects of these librarians not covered in the previous
survey, such as age, disability status, non-MLIS education, librarian
experience, salary, management positions, and mentorship experience. Based on
the survey findings, the profession needs to create pathways for VMLs to
explore leadership positions. Mentorship and leadership opportunities offer
such librarians a sense of belonging and sense of possibility for their own
future. Canadian librarianship could design pathways for non-ALA accredited
librarians with expertise and experience from their home country to secure
employment in Canada. Professional associations and library administrators also
need to make continued efforts to support these librarians to create an
inclusive space in their libraries.
Author
Contributions
Yanli Li:
Conceptualization, Data curation, Analysis, Investigation, Methodology, Project
administration, Supervision, Visualization, Writing – original draft, Writing –
review & editing Maha Kumaran: Conceptualization, Investigation, Qualitative
Analysis, Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing
Allan Cho: Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Writing –
original draft, Writing – review & editing Valentina Ly:
Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Visualization, Writing – original
draft, Writing – review & editing Suzanne Fernando:
Conceptualization, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – original draft,
Writing – review & editing Michael David Miller: Conceptualization,
Investigation, Methodology, Translation, Writing – original draft, Writing –
review & editing
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Appendix
Survey Questionnaire
Section One: Demographic
Information
1.
The Canadian Employment Equity Act defines visible minorities as “persons,
other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in
colour.” The visible minority population consists mainly of the following
groups: Chinese, South Asian, Black, Arab, West Asian, Filipino, Southeast
Asian, Latin American, Japanese and Korean. Are you a
visible minority librarian currently working in Canada?
o Yes
o No
2.
What group do you belong to or which group fits you the best?
o Arab only (includes Egyptian, Kuwaiti
and Libyan)
o Black only
o Chinese only
o Filipino only
o Japanese only
o Korean only
o Latin American only
o South Asian only (includes Bangladeshi, Indian,
Pakistani, and Sri Lankan)
o Southeast Asian only
(includes Vietnamese, Cambodian, Malaysian, and Laotian)
o West Asian only
(includes Afghan, Assyrian, and Iranian)
o White and Arab
o White and Black
o White and Chinese
o White and Filipino
o White and Japanese
o White and Korean
o White and Latin American
o White and South Asian
o White and Southeast Asian
o White and West Asian
o White and multiple visible minorities
o Multiple visible minorities
o Other (please specify) _________________
3.
Tell us if you are a first generation minority
librarian or not. First generation would mean that you were born elsewhere but
moved to Canada at some point in your life. Second generation would mean you
were born in Canada to immigrant parents. If you would like to add an
explanation about this, please use the text box below, such as your age or the
year when you came to Canada.
o First
generation ___________________
o Second generation ________________
o Other ___________________________
4.
Do you consider yourself to have a disability?
o Yes (please elaborate if you wish)
___________________
o No
5.
What is your age?
o 20-25
o 26-30
o 31-35
o 36-40
o 41-45
o 46-50
o 51-55
o 56-60
o 61-65
o 65+
6.
What is your gender identity?
o Female
o Male
o Transgender
o Two Spirit
o Other (please elaborate if you wish)
________________
o Prefer not to answer
Section
Two: Education
7.
When did you receive your MLIS / MLS degree or equivalent?
o Before or during 1980
o Between 1981 and 1989
o Between 1990 and 1999
o Between 2000 and 2009
o Between 2010 and 2019
o After 2019
8.
Where did you receive your MLIS / MLS degree or equivalent? Answer Q9 if option
one is selected, otherwise skip to Q10-15.
o From an
ALA-accredited Canadian library school
o From an
ALA-accredited American library school
o From a
library school outside North America
o Other (Please specify) _______________
9. Please select the university that you
received your degree.
o University of British Columbia
o University of Alberta
o University of Western Ontario / Western University
o University of Toronto
o University of Ottawa
o Université
de Montréal
o Dalhousie
University
o McGill University
10.
Please specify the COUNTRY where you received your library degree:____________
11.
Please provide the name of your institution:_____________
12.
Does your current employer recognize your professional library degree in terms
of your position?
o Yes
o No
13.
Have you taken any courses of study or programs in Canada to supplement your
library degree?
o Yes
o No
14.
Please provide the name of the course or program:______________
15.
How, if at all, has this made a difference to how your employer and the library
community recognize your credentials?__________________
16.
In addition to your MLIS / MLS degree or equivalent, please indicate other education
you attained. Select all that apply.
o Professional degree (what degree? e.g. Law)__________________
o Second Master’s Degree (what discipline?)
________________
o Third Master’s Degree (what discipline?)________________
o PhD (what discipline?) ___________________
o Additional Degrees, Certificates, or Diplomas (what
type?) ________________
o None of the above
Section Three: Employment
17.
How many total years have you worked as a librarian?
o 0-5
o 6-10
o 11-15
o 16-20
o 21-25
o 25+
18.
What inspired you to enter the library profession? Select all that apply.
▢ I was inspired
by a family member or friend that worked in the profession
▢ I got an entry
level job in a library
▢ Library role
models influenced me
▢ I thought it
would be an interesting profession
▢ I thought it
would be a well paying job
▢ I thought it
would be a rewarding job because I would have the opportunity to help others
▢ I liked the work
environment in a library
▢ I had the
expertise and skills fit for the library job
▢ I enjoyed books
and reading
▢ Other (please
elaborate) ___________________
19. Which province / territory do you
currently work in?
o Alberta
o British
Columbia
o Manitoba
o New Brunswick
o Newfoundland and Labrador
o Northwest
Territories
o Nova Scotia
o Nunavut
o Ontario
o Prince
Edward Island
o Quebec
o Saskatchewan
o Yukon
o Other (if you are working for a Canadian Library
outside of Canada) _________
20.
What type of library are you currently working at?
o Public Library
o Regional Library
o Academic Library
o College Library
o Special Library (what type? e.g., Government,
Religious Organization) _______
o School Library
o Other (please specify) __________
21.
Please select the job category(ies) that matches your
current job responsibilities. Select all that apply.
o Acquisitions /
Collection Development
o Administration
o Adult Services
o Archives
o Assessment
o Automation /
Systems / IT Services
o Bibliometrics
o Cataloguing / Metadata Management
o Children’s
Services
o Circulation
o Consultant /
Knowledge Management / Researchers
o Copyright
o Data Management and Curation
o Digitization and Preservation
o E-Resources and
Serials
o Government
Documents
o Instruction
Services
o Interlibrary Loan
Services
o Liaison Librarian
o Licensing
o Marketing / Outreach / Community Services
o Media
Specialist
o Project
Management
o Public
Services
o Rare
Books and Special Collections
o Reference /
Information Services
o Research
Services
o School /
Teacher Librarian
o Scholarly
Communications
o User
Experience
o Web
Services
o Youth
Services
o Other
(Please Specify) _______ _________
22. Do you work part-time (less than 30
hours/week), full-time (30 or more hours/week), or casual hours?
o Part-Time
o Full-Time
o Casual Hours
o Other _____________________
23.
Approximately how many hours are you expected to work per week?
o 20 hours or less
o 21-25
o 26-30
o 31-35
o 36-40
o 40+
o No hours specified (until the job is done)
24.
What type of appointment do you have?
o Permanent
o Temporary (e.g., contract, limited-term)
o Other (please specify) ________________
25. What is your gross (before taxes) yearly
salary from your employing library?
o $10,000 or
less
o $10,001 –
20,000
o $20,001
–30,000
o $30,001-40,000
o $40,001-50,000
o $50,001-60,000
o $60,001-70,000
o $70,001-80,000
o $80,001-90,000
o $90,001-100,000
o $100,001-110,000
o $110,001-120,000
o $120,001-130,000
o $130,001-140,000
o $140,001-150,000
o $150,001+
o Prefer not to answer
26.
Please describe your experience with respect to the following statements:
(1) I am treated with respect and accepted
as an equal member by colleagues in my department.
o Strongly agree
o Agree
o Neither agree or disagree
o Disagree
o Strongly disagree
(2)
My knowledge and work contributions are valued by colleagues in my department.
o Strongly agree
o Agree
o Neither agree or disagree
o Disagree
o Strongly disagree
(3) I feel free to speak my mind and express
my views openly amongst colleagues in my department.
o Strongly
agree
o Agree
o Neither agree or disagree
o Disagree
o Strongly disagree
27.
Racial microaggressions are subtle hostile, derogatory, or negative slights and
insults (verbal, nonverbal, and/or visual) directed toward people of colour,
whether intentional or unintentional. Please rate how frequently you have
experienced each of the following forms of racial microaggressions throughout
your career (Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Often, Always)
(1)
I was told that people should not think about race anymore.
(2)
I was told that people of all racial groups face the same barriers in employment
or promotion.
(3)
I was told that people of colour do not experience racism anymore.
(4)
I was told that I was overly sensitive about issues of race.
(5)
I was told that all people in my racial group are all the same.
(6)
My opinion was ignored in a group discussion because of my race.
(7)
A colleague assumed that I would have a lower English proficiency because of my
race.
(8)
A colleague claimed that he/she felt threatened because of my race.
(9)
A colleague showed surprise at my professional success because of my race.
(10)
I was told that I was hired because of my race.
28.
Other forms of racial microaggressions you have experienced throughout your
career:
________________________________________________________________
29.
Overall, how satisfied are you with your current job?
o Very satisfied
o Satisfied
o Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
o Dissatisfied
o Very dissatisfied
30.
What level is your current position?
o Non-Management
o Supervisor
o Middle Management (e.g., Branch Head, Department
Head)
o Senior Administrator (e.g., Head / Chief Librarian,
Director, or Deputy / Assistant Head, Chief, Director)
31.
Please indicate the extent to which race or ethnicity is a barrier to your
library career aspirations?
o Not at all
o To a small extent
o To some extent
o To a moderate
extent
o To a great extent
o To a very great
extent
32. Have you ever sought support from a
mentor? If “No” is selected, skip to Q36.
o Yes
o No
33.
Have you participated in any formal mentorship program(s)?
o Yes (what program?)
______________________
o No
34.
Have you ever had a mentor who is a member of visible minority group?
o Yes
o No
o Don’t know
35.
How helpful do you think the mentors have been in your career development?
o Extremely helpful
o Very helpful
o Moderately helpful
o Slightly helpful
o Not at all helpful
36. Please use the box below to add anything
else that we may have missed asking you or that you would like to share:
______________________________________________