Annual Report 2001-2002 - Cambridge University Library ...

staffThe problems of recruitment and retention of staff, feltacross the University, are particularly acute in theLibrary, where a high proportion of the staff are inclerical, technical and maintenance grades. Cambridgeis an area of high employment and high cost of living,and the University’s salaries are now so unattractivethat vacancies are being left unfilled for months,sometimes for years. Posts in Cleaning, TechnicalMaintenance and the Bindery seem to be impossible tofill, with the small number of applicants usuallyevaporating either before interview or when theyrealise just what salary they would be receiving. Thisis becoming an ever more serious problem which isputting at risk not just the services of the Library butalso the safety and security of its buildings and theirusers. Despite a tremendous commitment from thestaff concerned, the Library has, on a number ofoccasions, been unable to remain open after 17.00because there were simply not enough of the criticalstaff (mainly technical staff) available to shut downsuch a complex building. This shortage is directlyrelated to the number of unfilled (and apparentlyunfillable) vacancies.Miss Kathleen Cann retired from her post in theManuscripts Department and Mr Jeremy Wong, headof the Library Offices, resigned to move to a new job.Mr Stephen Lees stood down as head of theAccessions Division and took on a part-time roledealing with modern Greek books; Mrs MarjoleinAllen took over the headship of the Legal DepositDepartment from him on a temporary basis and MissMurray is overseeing matters at a divisional level untilthe planned review of accessions and cataloguing takesplace next year. Following a review of Library-wideservices, Mr Brian Jenkins took on responsibility forcollection management whilst remaining head of theSpecial Collections division. He relinquished hisposition as head of the Rare Books Department,however, and was succeeded in this by Ms NicolaThwaite.Most staff training during the year was necessarilyconcerned with preparations for the implementation ofthe ‘Newton’ system, but the usual basic orientationand induction courses for new staff, and the course inreference work for junior staff, continued. Mrs LesleyNoblett, from Cambridgeshire Libraries andInformation Services, ran a workshop on customercare, and a number of staff attended courses organisedby the University’s Staff Development Office,Computing Service and Disability Resource Centre.Professor Reif is to be congratulated on the award of aLitt.D. by the University.The deaths of the following former members ofstaff are recorded with regret: Mr R. Jordan, Mrs M.A.Merritt, Dr D.M. Owen (former Keeper of theUniversity Archives), Dr M.I. Scott (former head of theChinese section), Mrs W.T. Webster, and Miss E.Yorke (former head of the Financial Office).Munby Fellowship in BibliographyMunby Fellow 2001-2: Ms Susie West: ‘Living withbooks: the Norfolk elite and their libraries, 1660-1830’.In July 2002 the Library marked twenty-five yearsof the Munby Fellowship with a reception and lectureon ‘The irresistible rise of colour printing from woodblocks: major achievements of the Victorian age’ byDr Susanna Avery-Quash (Munby Fellow 1997-8).19FAR RIGHTProfessor OwenChadwick opensthe north-westcorner extension,which includes theRare Books,Manuscripts, andPhotographydepartments, andproject offices.RIGHTStaff from MITLibraries, HewlettPackard, theUniversity Library,the ComputingService andCambridgeUniversity Pressmeet to plan theDSpace@cambridgedigital archivingproject.