Another Librarian Quits

My local library has problems. They're mainly financial ones, but not solely. The volunteers, like me, make it able to work, but the paid librarians have poor morale and the HR that hires new librarians is the worst I have ever dealt with. And that is saying something. One of the good librarians, only having worked there around a year now, gave notice. Her last day is next weekend. I feel bad because she was kind and cheerful and showed up and did her job consistently with a smile on her face. She helped the patrons and put up with eccentrics, the stinky, and I guess the new librarian was just the last straw. She is the third librarian to quit rather than continue to work with the new branch librarian. Three out of a dozen is really bad numbers. Three capable and hard working librarians, not losers or wasters. This is a bad thing. I feel sorry for all involved but I'm sure the HR department will insist that the new hire have a full AS degree and three years work experience, again, and they'll eventually get someone who meets those criteria, then has to work with the new librarian, and will quit a few months after starting. Even with the terrible job market here, people would still rather quit than deal with the local library situation. Morale and work conditions are just that bad. This is tragic.

I could apply for her job, but I don't have the work experience and two of the problem staff members have already said they despise me (these are the anti-male chauvinists with professionalism problems) so I think I'll not bother. Besides, with the sort of rumors drifting out about the new librarian she'd probably schedule me to work at the same time as my internship just to prevent me finishing my AS degree. I have run into that kind of person before. They are Sadists. I don't want to play along, thanks very much.

Meanwhile, with my drive down the mountain to Marysville I work with a completely different environment and far more stable and less eccentric people. The environment is happy, the patrons are reasonable, and people come into the library to get books, not run drug sales operations. Its a huge difference and worth the drive, which at this point I find very meditative. Nobody has hit my car in the parking lot, and my pass continues to work.

When I finish my degree I am going to look for work down there, not up here. It is weird, but that's one of those things. Even the military brats are better behaved than the junkies up the mountain where I live. I am baffled by this, but whatever. It is better to move on than to struggle with a failing design. Even my car is happier with the drive.