Crisis in Employment

Nearly 73 percent of libraries are their communities' sole provider of free Internet access. Based on interviews with librarians across the country, this resource provides step-by-step directions for addressing the needs of library patrons seeking jobs, changing careers, or starting their own businesses. It explains how to provide Internet training to job seekers, how to maximize the library's physical resources, how to enhance reference materials for job seekers, and how to let community know what the library has to offer. Margin notes offer best practices from hard-hit public libraries and success stories from real-life librarians. An appendix lists books, databases, and test preparation software for job seekers and entrepreneurs, grouped in 15 categories. A second appendix provides sample documents to help patrons create resumes and gather materials before applying for jobs online. A companion web site contains the book's sample documents for download, plus additional materials, such as a guide to filing unemployment claims. The book is based on research from the ALA's Office for Research and Statistics (ORS) February 2009 report, Job-Seeking in U.S. Public Libraries, part of the Public Library Funding and Technology Access Study Annotation 穢2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)