Sorry, No!  I still do not believe that we have to accept that this is the only way forward.  In common I imagine with most librarians, I have a first degree and a postgraduate diploma.  In addition I am a chartered member of Cilip.  My assertion is that I have 'proved' myself by virtue of the fact that I have these qualifications.  The notion that I have to repeatedly and continually 'prove' myself again and again by this new 'revalidation' process that some bright spark has dreamed up merely in order to keep possession of my professional and chartered status is ludicrous.

 

Why should we have to 'prove' ourselves again? Logically, if an employer advertises for a librarian, they must already believe that a librarian would be an effective employee or would have 'worth'.  They obviously believe that employing a librarian will enhance their business/service, otherwise why bother employing one?  He then interviews people like me who have already 'proved' themselves in the way I have described above.  They may also have experience in varying degrees which will be supported by checkable references.  If that employee then does not do his job properly they would be fully justified in fireing him/her.  All the librarian has to do therefore is to carry out his/her duties to the best of his/her abilities and in as professional a manner as possible.  Personally I believe that this DOES actually prove something useful, - something much more useful in fact than attending a few one or two day courses at Cilip HQ.  I daresay these course are useful enough for CPD but to force members to attend a certain number of these (or any other) courses in order to 'prove' themselves fit for continued possession of status is arrant nonsense.

 

On this subject perhaps supporters of revalidation could explain who is going to pay for all this course attendance.  Cilip courses are not exactly cheap.  My employer certainly won't pay for it and, thanks to the low salaries 'enjoyed' by librarians due to LA/Cilip's historical and continued reluctance to dirty its hands with workplace negotiations, I certainly can't afford to pay for it myself.  Almost all Cilip courses are held in London or Birmingham.  Most of you would not believe the extra time and expense which is added on to the basic cost of the course in order for me to get from this island and stay in London.  I know that Cilip occasionally throws us a few scraps up here in the north but unfortunately, I have yet to find something to my taste at their Scotish venues and, at the rate the scraps are thrown , it looks like being a long time until I do.  Frankly, if it comes down to a choice between paying for my wife and I's summer holiday and putting my hard earned cash in some Information Consultant's pocket by attending a Cilip course, there's no contest.  I'm a professional trying to earn a living and better my family's lot.  I work to live, I do not live to work.  Some people appear to believe that 'professional' is synonymous with 'workaholic'.

 

Geraint Jones,

Islay, Scotland. 

 



	-----Original Message----- 

	From: Burge Suzanne [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 

	Sent: Fri 16-Jan-04 14:58 

	To: [log in to unmask] 

	Cc: 

	Subject: Re: LIS gazette: Watson

	

	



	Let me try to respond to some of the points which have been raised in the

	discussion so far.  I'm someone who is active both in CILIP, as a National

	Councillor, and in her trade union, Prospect, the union which represents

	professionals and specialists in central government, agencies,

	non-departmental public bodies and the private sector, where I chair the

	Librarians and Information Professionals' Group of the union.

	The medical professions and bodies like the NFU can act as trade unions

	because they have, generally speaking, only one employer to deal with when

	negotiating salaries, terms and conditions, and speak for all or nearly all

	their members in that single negotiation.  Librarians have thousands of

	different employers, and are frequently employed in ones and twos.  No

	employer is going to talk to anyone who does not represent a substantial

	section of their workforce because it's not worth their time, and equally no

	employer is going to want a small number of their workers to have completely

	different salary scales and terms to the rest of their workforce - the

	logical outcome if a separate body were to negotiate on their behalf, else

	why bother?

	Librarians and information professionals in my union meet together as a

	group, to share experience and information, and support colleagues, and the

	union's HQ and its branches draw on the expertise we can provide when

	negotiating on specific librarian issues - gradings, threats to services,

	etc.  Equally, we as a group turn to CILIP for advice and support when we

	need a broader picture or advocacy from the professional body, and we've

	always had the support we've needed.  CILIP's professional advisers deal

	with personal cases, but as CILIP doesn't have representational rights the

	way a union does, in appropriate cases it will suggest members approach

	their union or join one if they're not already a member.  If your union

	doesn't have this sort of body, try setting one up formally or informally to

	raise awareness of librarian issues.

	CILIP nationally can campaign to increase awareness of the importance of

	employing information professionals (and paying them adequately) and lobby

	individual employers, and it does.  But as Julian says, it's up to us to

	"prove our worth (and shout about it) to our employers".

	

	Suzanne Burge

	Information Manager

	Office of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman

	

	

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