As defined in the Agreement on Conditions of Appointment for Librarians, ‘librarian’ means a person appointed by the Board of Governors of the University of British Columbia as a librarian or an archivist. Each librarian and archivist is classified as a General Librarian, while some, as in Departments may have limited term appointments as Head.
Librarians perform a range of assigned duties, including: development of professional knowledge, collection development, access and preservation, records management, curating special collections and archival material, administration and supervision, project management, community engagement and reference and research activities. In addition, librarians are expected to contribute to scholarship and service to the Library, the University and the Profession.
Types of Appointment
There are two types of appointment: a term appointment or a confirmed appointment. The type, term and the termination date of every appointment should be clearly stated on the appointment letter.
Term Appointments
Term appointments are of the following two kinds:
(a) Term Appointments Without Review
These are either full-time or part-time appointments for a specified limited term, and carry no implication that the term will be extended or renewed. They are normally one year in length, and full-time appointments without review may not be held for more than three (3) consecutive years.
(b) Confirmation-Track Appointments
Confirmation-track appointments are full-time appointments and are the equivalent of tenure-track positions. They are normally set for a 3-year term and lead to a consideration for a confirmed appointment, typically in the third year. If a decision is made at that point not to grant a confirmed appointment, that decision will normally be followed by a one-year terminal appointment.
Confirmed Appointments
A confirmed appointment as a librarian is the equivalent of tenure.
Confirmed appointments are full-time appointments except when the University and a librarian have agreed to change such an appointment from full-time to part-time. They cannot be terminated before retirement except in accordance with Part 5: Conditions of Appointment for Librarians, Article 11, of the Collective Agreement or for financial exigency or redundancy as per the Collective Agreement.
Procedures of Appointment (Internal Candidate Priority)
New ongoing confirmation-track/confirmed appointments must be posted within the University system 2 weeks before they are posted externally. All internal candidates with confirmed appointments have the right to be considered. All other internal candidates may be considered.
Minimum Salary Scale for General Librarians
There is a minimum salary scale for Librarians which is negotiated by the Faculty Association. As a general rule, the salary scale should be increased annually by the same amount as general salary increases.
Librarians, like tenured and tenure-track faculty and lecturers, are eligible for merit and PSA awards and receive annual Career Progress Increments. Librarians are also eligible for study leaves. More information about salaries and leaves is available on our website.
