The New Zealand Library Association 1910-1970; its role in the demise of a feminised profession?

Glenda Northey

Abstract

I have traced the history of occupational segregation of librarianship from an international and New Zealand perspective as a foundation from which to assess the attitude of the New Zealand Library Association towards women in the profession, and how this has affected women's access to library education. I used two theoretical approaches to analyse the apparent low achievement of women in librarianship, the interactionist model and the power model, and discuss the findings which show that barriers were created which obstructed New Zealand women librarians from moving into areas of top management.

The Development of Librarianship as a Feminised Profession.

Librarianship emerged as a profession in the late 19th century at a time when women were beginning to take advantage of educational opportunities and access to paid employment. Weibel and Heim suggest that women were 'recruited for librarianship only when it became economically necessary and socially acceptable'.(1) Increasing running costs meant that by paying women lower salaries libraries could maintain and extend their services. The movement from the home into librarianship was seen as a genteel calling and an extension of women's traditional role because it involved 'service, transmittal of societal values and culture, focus on the individual and attention to detail'. (2).Women moved easily from the private sphere to the public world of library work. It was at this time that the common perception of a librarian changed from a scholarly dusty old man to the stereotyped form of the bespectacled, disapproving and severe spinster.

In 1877 the American Library Association stated that they wanted women involved in the profession because `they soften the atmosphere, they lighten our labour, they are equal to our work, and for the money they cost.... they are infinitely better than the equivalent salaries will produce of the other sex.' (3). Librarianship has been perceived as one of the few professions which encouraged the participation of women but in reality it has been just as exploitative. The employment of women in library work could be seen to have capitalised on the barring of women from other professions by drawing on their cheap labour. This open-door policy stemmed from a lack of general support for librarianship as a profession Anita R. Schiller states,' by using a marginalised work force, a marginal profession was able to stretch its resources and advance its own development.' (4).

Although librarianship was founded on the inequality and exclusion of women from other professions, the discrimination which existed for women in libraries reflected the attitudes and conditions which existed for women in all paid employment within society. Women consistently received lower pay and worked at a lower level within the organisation than men. So, it was inequality, rather than equality which was the basic condition of women's entry into libraries. Even so, the large numbers of women who entered librarianship were seen to feminise the profession and cause its marginalisation.

As recently as 1968, the British Library Advisory Council Report on the Supply and Training of Librarians, found that although women would constitute 70% of new librarians in the 70's, the average career span for 90% of them would be under 5 years. Of these only 10% would later return for 15 years or more.(5) From this finding they made two suggestions; that a special short training course be introduced for women who were intending to marry, and that salaries should be increased in order to attract more men into the profession. Both of these suggestions were damning to women by effectively dividing the profession into professional and support staff. At no stage did the Council successfully analyse the reasons for women's inability to pursue their chosen career, other than conceding that there was a great `academic wastage' in the education of women who left for domestic reasons.

The New Zealand Experience.

It is from this wider historic base I examine the attitudes of the New Zealand profession towards women and library education by reviewing the career development of women who graduated from the courses provided by the New Zealand Library Association. The Library Association of New Zealand was established in 1910, and later became the New Zealand Library Association in 1935. It was during the late 30's that the Library Association began investigating the possibility of establishing a training school for librarians in Wellington. By 1942 the NZLA Certificate Course (Intermediate ) had its first intake, followed in 1945 by a 1 year Professional or Graduate Course.

In 1962 W. M. McEldowney (past-President of the NZLA) described the aims of the courses by stating that `a girl who starts to work in a library after leaving school with SC or UE, and takes the job seriously enough to undergo a course of training but does not expect to be working all her life, will take the Associations (Intermediate) Training Course, whereas a boy who wants to make librarianship his career and wishes to bring up a family in reasonable comfort will take a university degree and then apply for admission to the Professional Course of the Library School' (6). Clearly women were not expected to make a career from library work, it was merely looked upon as a stop gap before their true calling was undertaken.

However, this was not to be the case. Although the Intermediate or Certificate Course did consist mainly of women, by 1975 over 390 women and 18 men had attended the course (7), men did not flock to the Professional Course as predicted by the President of the NZLA. Inducements to men were offered, they were given a marriage allowance of 140 pounds per annum, to assist them, but by 1975 only 141 men and over 250 women had graduated. Women were establishing their need to be educated at a higher level than was being provided through the Certificate Course.

The library profession failed to draw men in and the preponderance of women continued to depress the level of salaries. The NZLA was very aware of the lack of trained personnel in an expanding field and made desperate moves to try and encourage men to join. They saw that the 'casualty rate', due to women leaving after marriage, left huge gaps in the profession. The rapid turnover was seen by John Harris (NZLA President, 1948) as a vicious circle, he stated that 'better pay could hardly be justified for people who were merely filling in time'(8) but re-iterated that without better pay the profession could hardly hope to attract the type of people who would make librarianship their life's work. Ann Harriman states that low pay was another price that women pay for child bearing and child rearing, they 'earn less because their labour market participation is discontinuous, and during these periods of discontinuity their skills tend to depreciate.' (9)

Tenure and Aspirations.

In Britain the LAC (1968) cited that women worked on average only 4 years after training, and of those only 10% returned to the profession, in comparison men offered at least 35 years service.(10).

Figure 1. Anticipated career span in Britain . (11)

In New Zealand however, a survey of women library school graduates 1946-65 carried out by the Professional Section of the NZLA in 1969, found that the length of library employment after graduation of women in New Zealand averaged 5-9 years, and 53% of the 252 women surveyed who graduated between 1945-65 were still working either full-time or part time in libraries (12). It found that although the library profession in New Zealand had an established tradition of equality of opportunity, men spent longer in library work, and predominated the senior positions from an early age. The majority of married women questioned had wanted to return to, or stay in the work force, but found societal pressures prevented them doing so.

The report concluded that most women who wished to return to work on a part time basis still wanted a position of responsibility. Over 90% stated that part time work was an important feature in their return to paid employment. They felt that access to part-time work or job-sharing was important in assuring that the `marriage wastage' does not deplete the profession. However, it was felt that part-time staff were treated as unskilled and were paid as such. Ann Harriman suggests that employers have a taste for discrimination against women and ' by assigning women to entry level jobs which have the least promotion potential, and thus paying these jobs at the lowest rate' (13), an employer can differentiate between male and female workers. It is from these gender-based foundations that I explore two theoretical models to assess whether women in New Zealand have been subjected to low achievement rates as seen in Britain and America. To do this I examine statistics of women's ranking within the New Zealand library profession to determined the external and internal limitations which were imposed on them.

Theoretical models - Interactionist and Power.

These two theoretical perspectives were used by Gillian Burrington in her analysis of the under achievement of women in British libraries, in Equal Opportunities in Librarianship ?, and I have appropriated them to elucidate New Zealand circumstances. The interactionist model suggests women's low achievement is an indication of their career aspirations towards the domestic rather than public sphere, whereas the power model identifies how power is exercised by individuals or organizations and challenges women's lack of agency within a status system which gives men greater rewards of income and status.

Interactionist

Using the Interactionist model and the general hypothesis that women's under-representation in senior posts is due to their lack of ambition and their commitment to domestic and gender roles I examined both the myths and the realities which surround women's work. From as early as 1868 the medical profession had introduced 'neurasthenia' as a cause which prevented women from handling managerial responsibilities. 'Neurasthenia' or 'nerves' was women's handicap, and the disorder had 'an uncanny ability to choose the socioeconomic status of its victims, the disease seemed to prefer bourgeois women to those who worked in factories or fields. Intellectual women were considered to be especially at high risk since brain activity supposedly depleted their fragile reserves of nervous energy.' (14).

Rosalee McReynolds believes this myth laid women open to abuse. Any intelligent committed woman with career aspirations was lead to believe that they could not advance their career if they exhibited emotional behaviour and that the outcome of seeking higher positions was the possibility of illness or 'neurasthenia'. It must be remembered that at this time librarians were expected to work 45-50 hour week per week. Hours which in themselves could be considered taxing on health as well as working in areas deficient in adequate lighting and fresh air. This myth appears to have diminished around the 1920's with changing social attitudes and conditions of employment. McReynolds believes that 'the contention that females could not handle responsibility because of their inferior mental and physical capability never entirely disappeared, and during the 1920's and 1930's this was the sources of heated debate within the library profession' (15). In fact this debate continued well into the 1970's.

In 1985 Jan Bierman surveyed the career development of women librarians in New Zealand. She found that although women tended to enter the profession straight from school, they tended to maintain the same position for longer periods then men. Whereas men often entered the profession with non-library work experience but moved quickly up through the hierarchy either through promotion or transfer to another library. Bierman found women who tried to balance a career and family not only experienced problems with balancing the two careers, but stated that they were under pressure from their colleagues who felt that they were not as effective in their careers. Whereas Bierman states that for men's careers, families were considered to have a stabilising capacity. (16)

Power model.

In examining the statistics of managerial positions held by women within the library profession it became clear that it was also important to examine the type of libraries in which women are accorded power. It appears that the library profession itself has placed a higher ranking upon those who work within academic and university libraries. Public libraries came on the next tier down, with school libraries seen to be at the bottom of the pile. From this we can see the correlation in the positions held by women within such libraries. For example in 1985 McEldowney stated that of the 79% of women who work in University libraries only 1 was the Chief Librarian. In comparison we saw that over 90% of schools had women running their libraries.(17). Women's power is collected within positions marginalised by its own profession.

Anita R. Schiller elaborates on this when she analyses the three key indicators of women's status in professions; salary, job level and job type. She acknowledges that these patterns pervade all occupational structures, and states that the fact that women have continually accepted inferior positions shows how deeply rooted the beliefs in women's inferiority are.(18) This is part of the power model thesis; women are subordinated within a society which accord's men's work to be more important and reinforces the basic assumption that there are areas of work at which men are better equipped to cope than women. Within the New Zealand Library Association there has been a predominance of men at high levels. Between 1910 and 1960 5 women and 27 men had presided over the Association. This lack of role models, who could provide positive reinforcement that women can compete on a par with men, is part of the vertical segregation which has existed in most occupations.

McEldowney's report in 1985 demonstrated clearly how vertical segregation continued to oppress women within the profession. Women made up 60.4% of the total profession only these only 16.7% were Chief Librarians. The predominance of women was at the bottom end of the scale as 69% Senior/Library Assistants. Showing that women have continued to make up the rear guard of the profession as support staff. (19)

Figure 2: Women's position in the library profession in N.Z. in 1985.

This reinforced the public view of women in the profession, where women are seen to be engaged at skill levels, which inevitably affected their scale of pay. The power thesis enables the examination of the impact of males on the profession. Gillian Burrington suggests that `one major way in which men's decisions affect their women colleagues is in their construction of their invisibility and silence....they remain silent and largely invisible as people with known names and serious professional reputations. In such ways decisions made by those in power serve to reproduce and reinforce the ideology of female inferiority.' (20).

New Zealand had few female mentors within the profession, but those who rejected the low status of women as the norm, had a remarkable effect on the lives of librarians in New Zealand. Women such as Ellen Melville, Dorothy White, Dorothea Brown and Mary Ronnie modified and influenced women's confidence in the profession by providing powerful role models, and a clear response has been increasing numbers of women assuming senior posts.

Men within the NZLA, such as W. J. McEldowney, W. J. Harris and M. S. Fleming and C. W. Collins did little to enhance the view of women in the profession. Collins stated that equality was okay but `however ardently one may support the equality of the sexes, the fact remains that on the whole men give more stability to staff, and rightly or wrongly, also give it more standing.'(21). In his report to the NZLA Standing Committee on Salaries, Conditions and Qualifications opposing equal pay he cited Mr L. S. Henshaw (Lecturer in Psychology, Victoria University) and 'conceding that the sexes are more or less equally endowed... I don't think work after marriage is a practical thing for a woman, except purely as a temporary measure... I think we have to insist that the male has vastly greater responsibilities... equal pay strikes at the very basis of the family'. (22). Women were effectively relegated to the lower ranks to make up the `proletariat' of the library profession by the male members of their own Association.

The ideology that equal opportunity exists in librarianship is only contained in the sheer numbers of women who have entered it, rather than their having reached the top. Predominance does not dictate equality. Burrington states that the `decisions men make about their own careers have implications for the development of those of women and also women's self-perceptions of their abilities and the rewards they should receive for their work.' (23) She suggests that although the numbers of women who have challenged the status quo and rejected the gender ideologies have remained small, it has shown that women's low status in the profession is not necessarily the result of lack of ambition.

Combined Analysis of theoretical models.

It could be said that it is the combination of the power and interactionist theoretical models show how segregation within librarianship, as within wider society, has played a large part in assuring that women remain congregated within horizontal levels in their choice of occupation. In using the two theoretical models it becomes clear that both approaches are worthy of recognition. They both reinforce the public understanding of gender-based roles. Power subordinates and assures low self esteem and lack of motivation just as surely as myths which ensure women believe that they are unable to succeed. Other myths such as the 'cinderella syndrome' or 'fear of success' are part of a belief system which places negative consequences on female success. S. Demetrakopoulas states however, that it is not the fear of success which holds women back, it is the fear that in succeeding others may suffer. (24) However, as societal beliefs about women's role in society change, so have the numbers who have returned to work after marriage. The Department of Statistics (1990) report that 4 out of 5 women aged between 40-49 years returned to the work force and commented that `while gender difference in occupational segregation remain, these differences are slowly being eroded'.(25).

It has been suggested by a group called Women in Librarianship, that the selection for the Library school Graduate Course was not being done on merit. The group felt that `the increasing proportion of men being selected for Library School is viewed with concern... and that (for women) martial status was viewed as a bar to eligibility'.(26). I have been unable to substantiate these allegations, although statistics show that 113 men and 299 women gained the Diploma by 1969. It is clear however, that the Association was very concerned about the low recruitment of men, and that as library services developed, they saw a lack of skilled staff hindering development. To alleviate this the NZLA recommended that the `salary scale be revised to bring it into line with current practice... in relation to the salaries paid in other professions' (27). In doing this they hoped they would recruit men as `the need is greatest for men, in this man's world, if librarians are truly to gain recognition.'(28) This attitude coming from M. S. Fleming, President of the NZLA in 1960, gives an indication that men may gain precedence in admission over women to library education. But, because of this, have some men entered the profession because they have been unable to make it in other professions? If so, the mediocre calibre of such men would do nothing to enhance the public perception of profession which is presently attempting to raise its profile to that of other professions.

In the 1970's an increased awareness of women's changing roles in the profession was brought about by feminist writers who challenged the assumption that men should dominate the management of the profession. This was linked with major changes within the NZLA which saw the responsibility for the education of librarians move to the higher institutions of learning in 1979. Since the change of structure of the NZLA, and the name modification to the New Zealand Library and Information Association/Te Rau Herenga o Aotearoa there has also been an marked emphasis in women attaining positions at the higher tiers of management. Since its inception four women have presided over the NZLIA and most Public Libraries have women Chief Librarians. However, University Libraries were the last bastion to be breached.

Conclusions.

It is clear that however significant the changes have been, women's work still continues to have lower value than men's, and because of this women perceive themselves to be worth less. As a profession still dominated by women the NZLIA should be working to assure that the rules and conditions of work and public life begin to incorporate women's needs. It is also evident that an 8-12 hour day and unbroken service are no longer the norm, and that other priorities exist to enable provision of a good service, such as adequate staff child care facilities and flexible working hours to prevent the continued wastage of women's from occurring. In conjunction with this is the need for division of domestic labour within the family to support the re establishment of career goals for women.

Burrington suggests that the division of labour `distinguishes between the `real' professionals and those who support them, ....it (also) provides a neat dichotomy between the high and low status work areas'.(29). It will take a change in public perception about women's abilities and career commitment before women take their paid employment seriously. To do this end Burrington suggests that a change of `perceptions at a wider level, starting with the domestic environment and recognising that a major factor inhibiting progress towards equal opportunity in the workplace is the domestic division of labour'. (30).

In reviewing the literature the NZLA could be seen to have inhibited women's potential in the past by aligning itself to a society which marginalised women's work and actively participated in the employment of men in the belief that it would lift the standing of the profession . By according men's work with greater prestige than women's they could be seen to parallel other feminised professions such as nursing and primary teaching where women have continued to lose ground in the top managerial tiers. However, in the last two decades women have made it clear that in an era of consensus and consultative decision making the old 'masculine' style of leadership is no longer acceptable. They have moved away from the 'breadwinner' model of work structure, and refuse to be seen as merely a 'reserve army' of workers. Women's career development can not be modelled upon the masculine style of leaderships. They offer a alternative style to leadership, one which adds new values and different perspectives to the managerial role. It is no longer a question of gaining equal numbers within top management levels, but insuring that there are no limitations placed upon those women who wish to get there, and ungrudging acceptance that they have different needs to realise these goals.

I see that the future role of the NZLIA is to work alongside the employing organizations and institutions to create a work environment which is best suited to the needs of its members, which are currently dominantly women. If women's career needs are different from men, then clearly women's potential can no longer be measured by old leadership theories modelled on 'norms' sited on white, middle class men. By accepting that women's career patterns are far more complex than men's, and that their career choices are dominated by personal and demographic variables the NZLIA can make a significant impact on the profession by promoting greater flexibility in career timing. It is important that libraries be seen as proactive in acknowledging that child rearing is not the cessation of women's work experience, but is an extension of that career. Changes need to be made so that when women step down to meet family responsibilities, they no longer place themselves at a competitive disadvantage to men in career advancement. It would seem that in the past one of the major factors oppressing women's career development has been that 'male values' have governed the question of absence and timing during one's career. What I suggest is, that it is now time to work towards a female paradigm of employment, one which allows women agency to transcend female stereotyping.

References.

1. Great Britain. Library Advisory Council, A Report on the Supply and Training of Librarians, (London: HMSO , 1968) p. 9-10.

2. Kathleen Weibel and Kathleen M.Heim, The Role of Women in Librarianship 1876-1976: The Entry, Advancement and Struggle for Equalisation in One Profession, (Phoenix, Arizona: Oryx, 1979) p. xiv.

3. Ibid., p.xiv.

4. Anita R. Schiller, 'Sex and Library Careers', in Women in Librarianship: Melvil's Rib Symposium, (New Brunswick, N.J.: Bureau of Library and Information Science Research, Rutger University, Graduate School of Library Science, 1975) p.12.

5. Ibid., p.12.

6. W.M. McEldowney, The New Zealand Library Association 1910-1960 - its part in New Zealand Library Development, (Wellington: NZLA,1962), p.58.

7. W.M. McEldowney, 'Qualified Staff in New Zealand Libraries, New Zealand Libraries, 44 (1987) , p.170.

8. John Harris, `Training for librarianship in New Zealand', New Zealand Libraries, 11 (1948), p.275.

9. Ann Harriman, Women/Men/Management, (New York: Praeger, 1985), p.44.

10. Great Britain. Library Advisory Council, A Report on the Supply and Training of Librarians, (London: HMSO, 1968), p.9.

11. Gillian Burrington, Equal Opportunities in Librarianship? Gender and career aspirations, (London: The Library Association, 1987), p.25.

12. New Zealand Library Association. Professional Section, 'Women in Professional Library Work: a Survey of Women Library Graduates 1946-1965', New Zealand Libraries, 32 (1969), p.6.

13. Ann Harriman, Women/Men/Management, (New York: Praeger, 1985), p.46-48.

14. Rosalee McReynolds, 'The Sexual Politics of Illness in Turn of the Century Libraries, Libraries & Culture, 25:2 (Spring 1990), p. 196.

15. Ibid., p.212.

16. Jan Bierman, `Career development of women librarians in New Zealand', New Zealand Libraries, 84 (1985), p.227.

17. W.J. McEldowney, 'Qualified Staff in New Zealand Libraries 1951-1980', New Zealand Libraries, 43:10 (1982), p.156.

18. Schiller, 1975, p.13.

19. W.M. McEldowney, 'Qualified Staff in New Zealand Libraries 1975-1985', New Zealand Libraries, 45:8, (1987), p.172.

20. Gillian Burrington, `The Perceived Role and Status of Women in UK Librarianship, Library Management, 5:4 (1984) p.33.

21. Fleming, M.S. 'Presidential Address'', New Zealand Libraries, 25 (1962), p.33.

22. NZLA. Standing Committee on Salaries, Conditions, and Qualifications, New Zealand Libraries, 10 (1946), p.161.

23. Burrington, 1984, p.34.

24. S. Demetrakopoulas, "Listening to Our Bodies: the Rebirth of Feminine Wisdom, (Boston: Deacon, 1983), p.51.

25. New Zealand. Dept of Statistics: Ministry of Women's Affairs, Women in New Zealand, 1990. (Wellington: Govt. Printer, 1990) p.58.

26. 'Women in Librarianship: a statement', introduction by J. Thwaites, New Zealand Libraries, 38 (1975), p.252.

27. NZLA Annual report and Balance Sheet for year ended 31 December, 1956, New Zealand Libraries, 20 (1957), p.62.

28. M.S. Fleming, 'Presidential report' in New Zealand Libraries, 25 (1962), p.33.

29. Gillian Burrington, Equal Opportunities in Librarianship? Gender and career Aspirations, (London: The Library Association, 1987), p.124.

30. Ibid, p.136.