Spending on Staff Development
Mary Jo Lynch, Director, ALA Office for Research and Statistics
Academic and public libraries spend an average of 1.26 percent of total payroll on staff development and training, according to data collected for the ALA Survey of Librarian Salaries, 2001. Academic libraries in four-year colleges provided the largest amount (1.53 percent) of payroll on staff development and training. Large public libraries serving more than one hundred thousand patrons spent the least (.98 percent) of payroll on staff development and training. Generally, academic libraries spent more than public libraries (see table below).
| Type of Library | No. | Low % | Median % | Mean % | High % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public libraries serving 25,000-99,000 |
258 |
0.03 |
1.00 |
1.27 |
8.57 |
| Public libraries serving 100,000 and over |
154 |
0.07 |
0.76 |
0.98 |
7.43 |
| Academic libraries, two-year colleges |
95 |
0.12 |
0.90 |
1.26 |
5.62 |
| Academic libraries, four-year colleges |
79 |
0.07 |
1.26 |
1.53 |
6.28 |
| Academic libraries, universities |
178 |
0.03 |
1.08 |
1.35 |
10.34 |
| Total -- all libraries |
764 |
0.03 |
1.00 |
1.26 |
10.34 |
ALA collected the same data in 1995 (see Library Personnel News November-December 1995, page 1). At that time the average expenditures on staff development and training by academic and public libraries was 1.04 percent of payroll. As in 2001, academic libraries in four-year colleges spent the most and large public libraries spent the least.
The American Society for Training and Development reports that American businesses spent an average of 1.8 percent of payroll on training in 1999. Three hundred seventy-five U.S. organizations participated in the survey reported in the 2001 ASTD State of the Industry Report. When asked about spending in 2000, participants projected an average increase of 28 percent.
The ALA data were collected as of April 1, 2001. Respondents were asked to provide total payroll costs (salaries and wages for all staff, but not benefits) for the most recently completed fiscal year. In addition, respondents were asked to report estimated direct costs for staff development and training in the most recently completed fiscal year, including "expenditures for development and delivery of formal education events on site (e.g., speaker fees, materials), travel costs and registration fees for conferences, institutes, seminars, workshops, classes held off-site, distance education, job-related tuition reimbursement, purchase or rental of training materials (e.g., video, software), and cost of a staff development office."
