Recently Asked Questions

I read the response to the question of whether certain types of libraries must abide by the minimum wage in New York (https://wnylrc.org/raq/minimum-wage-public-library-employees). This includes the mandatory minimum salary paid to professional employees in certain categories who are exempt from overtime, most of whom (in libraries) have master’s degrees. I have to admit, I’m really disturbed that any entity in NYS can get away with paying as low as the federal minimum wage, given what the cost of living has climbed to.

You state that this is legal [for certain libraries] but any library considering this option [should engage an attorney with malpractice insurance to review that library's status under the law and provide a written opinion pertaining only to that library] before embarking on this path. Can you also speak to the potential downsides of choosing to pay less than the NYS minimum wage and minimum exempt salary if you discover you are allowed to do so? Thanks so much.

The [NAME REDACTED] Public Library has a materials selection policy in place. When recently updating the policy, trustees had questions about the "responsibility" section which states:

"Authority and responsibility for the selection of library resources is delegated to the Library Director by the Board of Trustees. At the discretion of the Library Director, staff who are qualified by reason of education, training and experience are given the responsibility to select resources within the framework of this policy."

The question we have is should the word "delegated" be used in this context. The Handbook for Library Trustees includes sections stating that the board is legally responsible for all aspects of the library as an institution and have broad and almost exclusive powers and authority to administer the library. We wonder if the delegated section is correct, or if the responsibility section should just say that the Library Director is responsible for the selection of library resources.

What, if any, are the ramifications if a school district public library board of trustee member refuses to sign the code of ethics and/or the conflict of interest/whistleblower policy?