Audit says library staffing still not up to par

Staffing at Chicago's 80 public libraries is better than it was, but it's still not aligned with community needs, Inspector General Joe Ferguson concluded Wednesday, recommending a "systemwide workload analysis."

Deficiencies in the Chicago Public Library's staffing plan may contribute to "inefficient use of …. human resources" with some staffers "performing tasks that fell outside their job descriptions and for which they were overqualified," Ferguson wrote.

"Clerks reported regularly engaging in sorting and shelving, tasks normally done by pages …. A clerk at a library serving a largely Hispanic neighborhood [said] her status as the only bilingual staff member made it a practical necessity for her to perform tasks outside her job description on a regular basis," the audit states.

"One branch manager told us that many positions perform many roles, which in some cases, results in personnel spending time on activities that could be done more cost effectively by employees holding other titles."

In his first city budget, Mayor Rahm Emanuel proposed reducing library hours and imposing draconian job cuts that would have impacted library services at all hours.

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