Emergency Preparedness for Libraries. Julie Todaro
“no message on record.” This should include unique timelines or length of restrictions or measures to correct.
• Outline roles and responsibilities for managers with regard to follow-up including communication with the protagonists and workers, as well as messages placed on user records.
• Seek external training—as appropriate—for actions that require or appear to need unique training.
Manageable, but Not Solvable
• Adopt and adapt to umbrella organization or governing authority definitions for these or related issues.
• Adopt and adapt to umbrella organization or governing authority guidelines for these or related issues.
• Identify the institution’s parameters for the situation including who makes final decisions on the situation not being identified as solvable.
• Identify the institution’s chain of communication for decision-making regarding specific management aspects. (Note: include a master list of languages spoken by staff or nearby workers that may be needed for communicating.)
• Create an institutional list and refer to the institutional process owners for a “who-to-call-list,” why, and when.
• Design scripts for workers to use.
• Design and regularly conduct training that allows for practice for manageable but not solvable situations.
• Identify outstanding issues of not solvable as well as the location of communication regarding this user or worker such as “only to file” and “no message on record.” This should include unique timelines or length of restrictions or measures to correct.
• Outline roles and responsibilities for managers with regard to follow-up including communication with the protagonists and workers as well as messages placed on user records.
• Seek external training—as appropriate—for actions that require or appear to need unique training.
Not Solvable, Must Be Referred
• Adopt and adapt to umbrella organization or governing authority definitions for these or related issues with special attention to areas and individuals for referrals.
• Adopt and adapt to umbrella organization or governing authority guidelines for these or related issues.
• Identify the institution’s parameters for the situation including who makes final decisions on the situation not being identified as solvable.
• Identify the institution’s chain of communication for decision-making regarding specific management aspects. (Note: include a master list of languages spoken by staff or nearby workers that may be needed for communicating.)
• Create an institutional list and refer to the institutional process owners for a “who-to-call-list,” including “who to refer to,” why, and when.
• Design scripts for workers to use.
• Design scripts for managers to use.
• Design and regularly conduct training that allows for practice for situations that are not solvable.
• Identify outstanding issues of not solvable as well as the location of communication regarding this user or worker such as “only to file” and “no message on record.” This should include unique timelines or length of restrictions or measures to correct.
• Outline roles and responsibilities for managers with regard to follow-up including communication with the protagonists and workers as well as messages placed on user records including referral information.
• Seek external training—as appropriate—for actions that require or appear to need unique training.
Institutions also encounter conflict and strife within the community that does not relate to the library. These situations might include issues among other users, other businesses or institutions, political or social situations, law enforcement issues, or issues among nonusers. For these situations, the institution’s managers—guided by umbrella institution or governing authority statements, policies, or procedures—must directly address worker, user, and nonuser behaviors, including the following:
• Declarations of support/or not from workers
• Use of the library building
• Use of the library property
• Posting signs in library
• Use of library resources
Losses/Tumult
In today’s workplaces, managers and workers may encounter a variety of situations that interject altered morale, or changes in attitude, behavior, and other elements into the regular workplace. These could include but are not limited to death of coworkers or community members, serious illness of coworkers or community members, local/community serious events, and national or even global issues, as well as confusion or disorder of a large-scale nature. While a manager might not expect changes—either temporary or permanent to bleed over into the workplace—in fact, based on the nature of the event, the constant media/information sharing happening, or the direct relationship of the event to—for example, one or more workers or the values of the organization—events must be addressed.
General recommendations for dealing with losses or tumult include the following:
• Prior to events happening or taking effect—if the situation is known—address them with workers or users as to effects, expectations of behavior, and organizational latitudes as well as support for workers as required, suggested, or requested.
• If events occur with no warning, managers need to address them with workers or users as to effects, expectations of behavior, and organizational latitudes as well as support for workers as required, suggested, or requested.
• Temporary or permanent changes resulting from events should be addressed through management explaining impacts or effects with tool such as paradigm shifts. These shifts—depending on the situation—should be addressed in general but, in many cases, managers should consider a more narrowly defined shift such as a shift for all in a job category or specific individuals based on their position descriptions.
• Institutions should communicate to workers and users by offering support, for instance if a beloved children’s worker passes away expectedly or unexpectedly, workers or users might need a professional available to discuss loss, and so on for coworkers, parents with children, and so on:
• Worker assistance programs for group or individual or user assistance
• Statements published in local press, on the library’s web environment, a flyer, handout, or sign in the library area expressing concern, condolences, and so on with support or referral information
• Information with closure opportunities for coworkers and users
• In times of tumult, if safety or risk might be of concern for workers or users, managers might:
• Identify library or community workers to assist with behaviors or techniques to stress safety or minimize risk
• Advertise worker assistance programs for group or individual or user assistance
• Schedule additional/increase support for workers or users to show concern and maximize safety
The Basics of Preparation for Working with External Areas and Entities
Although this content is embedded in various other emergency response situation recommendations, it is isolated here as basic recommendations for all managers to take prior to any specific emergency management is designed for any size and type of institution.
Vendor Relationships
Rather than recommending specific vendors, this content provides general recommendations for vendor review