NCLA Pay Equity Project

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NCLA Pay Equity Project

• Love of the Job doesn't Pay the Bills
• Why Pay Equity is More Important than Ever

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Introduction and Background

• LSTA grant to study and investigate issues of pay
  equity for library personnel in NC
• Continued work of NCLA Pay Equity Task Force
• Purpose
• To educate librarians, library staff and library
  customers regarding the role and value of library
  staff so that they are compensated fairly

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Project Steering Committee

• Beverley Gass, DLS, Guilford Technical Community
  College, Project Manager
• Jenny Barrett Boneno, Forsyth County Public
  Library
• Pauletta Brown Bracey, School of LIS, North
  Carolina Central Univ.
• Robert Burgin, PhD, President, NCLA, Fiscal
  Manager

• Keith Burkhead, Guilford Technical Community
  College
• Evelyn Council, Fayetteville State University
• Jennie Hunt, Greensboro College
• Connie Keller, Elon University
• Paula M. Singer, PhD, Consultant

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Other Partners

• Donald King, PhD, University of Pittsburgh
• Jose-Marie Griffiths, PhD, University of North
  Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Mary Boone, State Librarian
• NCLA Executive Board

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Three Phases of Work

• Planning and Development
• Survey Development and Implementation
• Public and Academic Libraries
• Development of Web-based Educational Materials
  and Tools

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Phase II

• Web-based survey designed
• Pilot study conducted for academic and public
  library surveys
• Conducted survey with public library and local
  governments
• Conducted survey with academic libraries and
  institutions
• Collected and analyzed data
• Designed NC salary database

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Phase III

• Tools developed for library employees to use in
  advocating for improved compensation and pay
  equity
• 2 web accessible databases searchable by
  individual library, local government and higher
  education positions
• Written report, including methodology, data
  analysis and findings
• Web based materials for librarians advocating for
  better salaries and pay equity
• Including these speaking points, brochure
  template and PowerPoint training presentation
• All found on NCLA website and as Appendix to
  written report
• Pay Equity Committee available to train NCLA
  members on use

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What is Pay Equity?

• Evaluating and compensating jobs based on the
  skill, effort, responsibility and working
  conditions required, not on the people who hold
  the jobs (men or women).
• Similar terms
• Comparable Worth
• Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value

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Project Methodology

• 5 committee meetings
• 7 teleconference calls with committee members
• 4 surveys designed
• Academic libraries
• Institutions of higher education
• Public libraries
• Local governments
• Positions matching those in the UNC Institute for
  Government Services and College and University
  Personnel Association surveys included

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Project Methodology

• 6 pilot studies
• Surveys streamlined and updated
• Benefits to survey participants stressed

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Findings Public Library/Local Government Survey

• 12 jobs included in public library survey
• 17 jobs included in local government survey
• Positions compared based on
• Similarity of education and experience
  requirements
• Scope
• Effort
• Responsibility
• Working conditions

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Findings Public Library/Local Government Survey

• Survey sent to all public libraries (79) and
  local governments (110) in NC
• 62 public libraries (78) responded
• 50 local governments (45) responded
• Additional local government data added from NC
  Institute for Government Services database for
• 11 non-responding libraries and
• 56 non-responding local governments

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Findings Academic Libraries/ Institutes of
Higher Education

• Survey sent to all community colleges, colleges
  and universities (110) in NC
• Survey to institutes HR departments included 19
  jobs survey to academic libraries included 17
  jobs
• 73 academic libraries (66) responded
• 26 HR departments (24) responded

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Outcomes

• Two web accessible databases
• Public library/local government
• Academic library/community colleges, colleges,
  universities
• Databases include pay information about a variety
  of jobs in all areas of the public and academic
  sectors that can be accessed and customized
• Databases allow participants library to compare
  the pay of their own positions to those in other
  libraries and in local government or higher
  education (depending upon participation).
• A clear and accurate understanding of how the pay
  for jobs in libraries compares to other employers.

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How can the data be used?

• Compare jobs for
• Compensation and budget planning
• Updating salary plans
• HR planning
• Assessing pay equity
• Making a case to local officials and funders

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Databases include

• Demographics
• For each participating jurisdiction, institution
  or library
• of full-time employees
• of part-time employees
• Budget
• Population (or enrollment)

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Databases include

• Each participant reported the following for each
  position
• Hours worked per week
• of full-time and part-time employees in the
  position
• Average pay of incumbent(s) in the position
• Hiring rate (if any) for the position
• Minimum and maximum of the pay range for the
  position
• Longevity pay (if any) for the position

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Participants also reported

• The library, jurisdictions or colleges title
  for each position
• The education and experience required for the
  position
• The FLSA (exempt/non-exempt) status of the
  position
• A degree of match rating
• An indication of how closely the position matches
  the description provided in the survey instrument

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Summary of Findings

• Public Library/Local Government
• There is a difference in pay and pay ranges
  between public library jobs and local government
  jobs
• Difference occurs even for the same position
• For example, PC technician in a public library vs
  PC technician in local government, or systems
  administrator, etc.
• Also difference in pay for jobs requiring similar
  education, experience, skill, effort and
  responsibility when comparing jobs that are
  predominately female versus those that are more
  often held by men.
• Traditional womens work (i.e., librarianship
  and working in a library) undervalued

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Summary of Findings

• Academic Libraries/Colleges and Universities
• Less data returned in this portion of the study,
  still, there is a clear difference in pay between
  academic library jobs versus those in the
  college/university in general
• Also a difference in pay for jobs that require
  comparable education, experience, skill, effort
  and responsibility when comparing jobs that are
  predominately female versus those that are more
  often held by men.

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Recommendations

• Public and academic libraries can present a
  strong case to local officials and other funders.
• Ensure job descriptions are well written and
  reflect actual, professional duties, stressing IT
  responsibilities as applicable.
• Use same language as respective jurisdictions or
  institutions
• Update regularly
• Sr. level library staff serve on compensation
  committees, ensure local government or
  institution HR personnel aware of scope and depth
  of library jobs.
• Women negotiate salaries, including their
  starting salary. 

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Cautions using the data

• Difference in findings based on geographic
  location some have higher cost of living.
  Geographic differences not a factor when
  comparing jobs in a library to similar jobs in
  the same local jurisdiction or institution.
• Analyze responses by degree of match, education
  and experience required for all positions (and
  hours worked for non-exempt positions)
  differences in these categories exist even within
  library systems.
• Take education and longevity into account as
  these often impact actual salaries paid to
  incumbents - particularly important in reviewing
  single incumbent positions.
• Age data to the time of analysis. Data is
  approximately 1 year old many employers have
  awarded cost of living or other increases in the
  interim.

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Cautions using the data

• Some variations in pay may be due to length of
  service. Higher pay is often associated with
  longer service, though not necessarily in senior
  level positions.
• Include review of hiring rates where reported.
• Scope measures impact pay (especially for
  professional positions) and should be considered
  
• Budget
• Supervisory responsibility
• Size of library in relation to place in
  government entity

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Data can provide

• The pay of positions in your public or academic
  library to the equivalent positions in your
  local jurisdiction or college/university to
  assess pay equity
• The pay of positions in your library or academic
  library to matching positions in other library
  systems or academic libraries
• The pay of positions statewide or by individual
  geographic location
• The database does the calculations users only
  have to select position titles and
  library/jurisdiction/ institution name.
• Comparisons are made in dollars and percentages
• Comparisons also provided as mean or median

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Accessing the Website

• Go to
• http//www.nclaonline.org/payequity/results/index.
  php?s1

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How to use the website

• The public or academic reports buttons allow you
  to download the databases and save to your
  computer as an Excel file or use on-line.
• Lists of all of the job descriptions used during
  the survey process are also provided
• The instructions button provides instructions for
  downloading the data
• Once the data is downloaded, there are
  step-by-step guides to using the databases in the
  Instructions tabs of each spreadsheet

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Additional Information

• Beverley Gass, Chair
• [phone] Ext. 2434
• abgass_at_gtcc.edu
• Or the NCLA Website and Committee