librarian

program assistant

senior librarian

information technology specialist

Brooklyn Public Library

Dept of Public Safety (DPS) is a very small department so there is absolutely no room for advancement. Your only promoted if you are liked and not promoted on the merits of your job experience and performance. If your single with no kids, then the starting pay is alright. However, there is limited to no overtime available so don't expect any big paychecks to be made. The Public Safety Director (SG) is unpleasant making for a stressful and hostile work environment at times. There is alot of micromanaging that comes from the director therefore, Sergeants have no real powers to approve shift changes and other needs for their Officers on their own. There is ALOT of petty rules and regulations to be followed and your subject to a written warning for the most childish things. Officers have been fired for no legit reason by the hands of the DPS director who has gone over the heads of the Union and HR proper process of investigating and holding a disciplinary panel hearing for alleged claims. You have no choice to any particular shift or branch location that you may desire to work at. Seniority is not respected or considered for shift and location assignments. Officers have been physically assaulted and spit on while on duty with no arrest made against the attacker. Any and everybody is allowed entry to the library so you'll deal with drug addicts, alcoholics, perverts, and emotional disturbed persons. You are not equipped with the necessary tools for self-defense and body protection. Your hired for Peace Officer employment but treated as a regular security guard so there is a lack of respect by library staff and patrons for the authority you do have. New hires have only stayed less than 2 years. Some have quit within a few months, weeks, and even days. The DPS director has made working at Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) a not enjoyable work environment. I would not recommend applying for Special Officer.

BPL is a solid place to work.  It is what you make of it and there are opportunities if you want to take initiative.  I enjoyed designing and leading programs for kids and young adults.  Some people just skate by doing the minimum.  But if you can apply your interests, you can make the job more meaningful.  Also, trying to maintain an altruistic attitude and realize you are serving people, often helping them find practical info about housing, jobs, social services that can make a difference in their life.  

I got a good introduction to all facets of librarianship there: reference, collection development, programming etc.  It was interesting working in different branches and getting to know different neighborhoods.  I made some friends and met some interesting people working there.  Sometimes I feel like people use it as a stepping stone, get sick of it and then move to a different part of the country and get another job at another library be it public or a university library.  Other people are lifers because they want to keep living in NY and it is a dependable job with some intellectual perks being around books, good benefits, etc.  It does seem like it is possible to keep moving up to a supervisory position of a branch library if you put in enough time.  

I volunteered for the summer meals program. 
It was about 2 weeks which was okay for me since I just wanted experience with children 
The location of the summer meals program was in the basement of the library. The environment was mundane. It was just a big room with chairs and then a television next to a miniature stage. 
I distributed meals to the children and families and help with the setup and breakdown of the lunch area. 

Getting the job done is in a hassle all you have to do is wait until somebody comes in and then you ask them what they want. Sometimes they even know what they want so you just get to them smile and then wait for the next family. If people don't arrive then you just sit there and watch the movie that plays for the children. 


Instructions are self-explanatory however the one thing I wasn't really told is how to deal if a child is running around which should have been my type of situation to deal with but again it was my first time.

MAKE SURE CHILDREN ARE NOT RUNNING AROUND. MAKE SURE THERE ARE NO LIQUID SPILLS. PARENTS GO UP WITH FOOD TELL THEM "Oh! here's a bag, so nobody will tell you to put away your food you know it's kind of implying them to not take their food up

Brooklyn Public Library could be a better place to work at, if management knew what they were doing at all times. There is no sense of direction here!!! Way too much favoritism, Most NLS's AND MAJORITY of LCS's that has been in the system for so many years feels like they have a sense of entitlement, they come into work and lamp around and nitpick at others instead of doing their job, or they come into work and watch tv at the job and eat all day!! since when they was a job description!! Regionals really don't do much because everyone here is so concerned about being "friends" . Everyone here becomes sooo complacent to the point where when it's time for HR to step up to the plate and actually help nothing gets done and everything gets swept under the rug. Management does not care about the people thats on the front lines everyday that has to deal with the public but more so that has to deal with INCOMPETENT supervisors at the branches, ESPECIALLY the LCS's. It's a good place to start as far as a job, but do not i repeat do NOT look for career advancement at BPL, unless your a family member of someone who works there or you KISS management 'YOU KNOW WHAT" to get the position. People here posting positive ratings about BPL NEEDS TO WAKE UP AND STOP TRYING TO “ Save Face” 

This is only about the adult learning department, I don't know how to rest of the library is for staff. It started out as a mixed bag: very nice getting to work with students virtually, appreciated the flexibility of evening and Saturday classes as a current college student, but lack of clarity and direction in roles and responsibilities. it's only gone downhill since I started. there is no sense of direction at all, and changes/decisions are made without any consideration of staff. management really does not care about us. will tell staff in meetings "if you don't want to be here, leave" and "we dont need you here." what kind of attitude is that? full time staff treats part timers very poorly. most of the department is staffed by part timers and the division is clear. no benefits, don't expect to get paid for all the hours you work, be expected to put up with a lot of disrespect. the only reason i'm here is because of the students and because of scheduling. once we transition to in person work i am out. I cannot imagine having to be berated by management in person, at least I can mute the Zoom calls...

This is a massive network with lots of departments and locations. Things are not always consistent because of the discretion of regional and location managers… sometimes it’s great but other times you feel a lack of support. Depending on what you do, the work can be really fulfilling and feel good but there are always challenges when working w the public. Sometimes the work gets exhausting because of bad communication and different motivations between departments. There is an attempt to improve workplace culture between the different generations and tax brackets among staff, but there is a long way to go. A good place to get experience in a busy metropolitan area, but may not be a place you want to stay long term if you are expecting consistent internal support. 

This was my very first job starting at the age of 17 and I was able to keep up with the fast paced environment. Not only did I love the rush but it fit perfectly into my school schedule at the time and it was an environment where every one respected each other personally as well as their job duties. My co-workers and I in HR were actually considered a family. I have two and half years of experience with clerical work as my position in a office that still has not left me. Alphabetizing folders dating back into the late 70's early 80's for employees with seniority at different library locations. I also handled in box and outbox notices, faxing, time sheets (signatures and hours bi- weekly), reviewed new employees credentials, sick notices, updated the computer system, and lastly temporarily stepped in for the front desk receptionist when she was out. LOVE LOVE LOVE this job and will hope to find another soon!!
(Was so great I received a big jump in salary)

It is the busiest branch in brooklyn right along with the Grand Army Plaza library branch. The most days that keeps me extremely busy was Fridays and Sundays, that is when the library is in full capacity and the hardest part of the job is trying to keep the aisles and shelves tidy so the are no accidents. The children section is the hardest place to keep the area straight because the kids are running and throwing the books on the floor and our job is to make sure all of the book materials are off the floor. For the most part, Saturdays were more a calm and quiet day because there were less patrons there and I can easily do my job and enough time to tend to my section and make sure everything are in order. I enjoyed my co-workers, they made the job a little less stressful and fun to be around with and they had great personality. I enjoyed working at the library but my time was up and I was ready to move on challenging my experience to higher expectation.

A typical day at work i would go in look at the schdule to see if i'm working at the checkout desk first or the return desk. I take my stuff to my locker say hello to my coworker and my supervisors the i go to my desk. At the checkout desk i give library cards to first time users at the library and replaced cards to the patrons that lost theirs. I answer the phone to patrons that want to renew the item on their cards because they can't make it to the library. I also direct the patrons to the restrooms, the cafe , the computer room and the kios so they can pay their overdue fines.On the return desk i check in the the books and dvd's the the patrons return and inform them over their fines if the had any.

I worked here for 9 months as a T4 Tech intern back in 2017-2018. In all honesty, the experience was both fun and boring at the same time. I will start with the good things: useful Adobe Creative Suite classes, computer building activities, and coding activities. 
The downsides: My branch was really small and there was barely anything to do. Even worse, I WASN'T allowed to go on lunch breaks. I wasn't even informed about this until I was HALFWAY done with my internship. I wasted nine months working here just to earn a small stipend. I'd only recommend working here if you can relate to the other co-workers and if you're actually interested in working at a library. Working a full-time job at this place is a different animal so I can't really say much. However, you should be prepared for any bad apples that come your way.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Librarian 4 salaries reported	$63,750 per year
Program assistant 4 salaries reported	$19.25 per hour
Senior librarian 3 salaries reported	$67,725 per year
Information technology specialist 3 salaries reported	$42,000 per year

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