Document Type
Article
Original Publication Date
2024
Journal/Book/Conference Title
In the Library with the Lead Pipe
Date of Submission
April 2024
Abstract
Although the academic libraries profession recognizes that retention is a complex and important issue, especially for advancing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and supporting BIPOC librarians, the library literature largely avoids defining or providing a measurement for retention at all. In this paper we propose an original nuanced definition of retention. We draw from existing research on workplace dynamics and library culture and our qualitative exploration of academic librarians who have left jobs before they intended. Our research investigated what it was like for them to stay at those jobs after they realized they didn’t want to stay long-term. We argue that structural aspects of the academic library profession (such as emotional investment in the profession, geographic challenges, and role specialization) can lead to librarians staying with organizations longer than they would otherwise, and that this involuntary staying is not functional retention. We explore the distinction between involuntarily staying and voluntarily staying at an organization, as well as the coping strategies library employees may engage in when they involuntarily stay. Finally, we make the argument that functional retention is a relationship between the organization and the individual employee in which both sides are positively contributing to the workplace culture.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Is Part Of
VCU Libraries Faculty and Staff Publications
Comments
Article is available at https://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2024/not-all-staying/