Recently I had occasion to cast my eyes over the LIANZA Code of Conduct for librarians in NZ.
The code seems to be mostly common-sense or even instinct level stuff for the modern librarian, but I suppose that is really a reflection of the combined experience and education the drafters of this code brought to their task. I received my MLIS back in 2009, and it is possible that some of the authors of the code of conduct lectured me at Victoria University.
Two parts of this august document caught my eye; the first was the part about duties to clients and to wider society. I am a special librarian and I serve a select group of clients. Wider society doesn’t get much of a look in, except indirectly. Your clients are whoever you are paid to look after. But one doesn’t become a librarian without that gut level desire to be helpful, to be useful. At a time when the usefulness and purpose of libraries is constantly under attack I think we want to show our customers exactly what we are capable of and prove our value. At least I do anyway, and reading the code reminded me of why I got into this business in the first place.
Therefore I was bemused by the clause which calls for librarians to refrain from profiting from their job (aside from their normal pay) without declaring their interest. As a profession, we aren’t renowned for our pursuit of filthy lucre. Have you ever heard of a rich librarian? It’s an oxymoron!
I doubt that this code gets a lot of attention day to day, but I am pleased it is there to be found on the LIANZA website. It reinforces what we all know: librarians are all about service to others.
