All in a Day's Work

Reference Desk Dilemmas

“…Placzek fully places the blame on a crammed schedule and associates stress and burnout with a librarian' s realization of the insufficient amount of time to carry out these duties. 35 On the other hand, Cardina and Wicks found no correlation between the number of jobs performed and the level of job satisfaction, indicating that perhaps the increasingly busy nature of the job has no affect on the stress levels of reference librarians. 36 Ennis appears to support this perspective by reporting that 83 percent of the librarians in her survey felt positive about the future of reference librarianship despite the increasing workload.…”

“…21 Due to their central location within the library and a growing encouragement for interaction between librarians and patrons, reference librarians have to deal with users' expectations for instant information where the patronage can be very numerous and their questions varied in scope. 22 The majority of students entering post-secondary education today are classified as "Millennials" and have grown up in a multitasking environment complete with immediate feedback and high expectations. 23 Whether it is through instant coffee or instant messaging, their expectations have changed from "as soon as possible" to simply "now," and this includes answers from the reference desk.…”

“…She writes, "Being a reference librarian is sort of like being a bartender without the sticky beer mess and the drunks." 32 There are additional tasks for a reference librarian to undertake that are time consuming but are difficult to identify and record. As Butcher points out, "librarians are overworked.…”

“…Placzek is a strong supporter of organization and time management to help alleviate stress and also suggests that a sense of humor and an open perspective create a more stress-free environment in the workplace. 38 Ennis as well as Chan and Auster advise reference librarians to take time for training and outside instruction. 39 Spires recommends that all librarians take a moment to step outside of the library during the work day and take a breath of fresh air.…”

“…43 Placzek also mentions that communication within the workplace is a key factor in creating supportive networks such as a buddy system at the reference desk where coworkers can function as a tag team in a stressful situation. 44 In this, librarians are being encouraged to implement a form of peer mentorship in order to create interconnectedness and support at the reference desk.…”