You're probably wondering...

...about the status of BUSP's renovation. Your supervisors are too. We should all know something concrete in about a week. According to Steven, if funding and plans aren't in place by November 1, nothing will happen during spring semester. Time will tell us all.

So you're sick...

Most all of us get sick from time to time. If illness keeps you from making it in to work your shift at BUSP, call 855-1957 and ask to speak to the supervisor on duty. Your call alerts us to your absence, and allows us to plan around it. Do not send your supervisor an e-mail. He/she may not be reading e-mail because he's sick too, or she's taking a vacation day, attending a training session somewhere, etc. Call each time you'll miss a shift. For example, if you're scheduled to work Mondays and Wednesdays, call us both days. The exception to this is if a doctor has told you that you cannot come back to work until a certain day. In that case, you only need to call once and let us know that date. Do remember that if you do not call in, time and a half comes out of your time bank. And do talk to Terry if an illness causes you to miss a lot of hours. She can make exceptions to the time bank rule for serious illnesses.

After you've called us, hop back in bed and get your rest. Better still, call us from your bed. We'll miss you, and want you well so you can be back with us as soon as possible. Take care!

Can you tell me what this fine is about? I don't owe this. This bill is wrong. I returned that recall on time. Etc., etc., etc.

How do you reply to a patron's questions (or demands!) regarding bills and fines?

a) Tell them you don't know.
b) Look up their patron record and report your findings to them.
c) Get your supervisor.
d) Pretend like you don't see the patron.

Answer: C, get your supervisor. Although you like being helpful, do not try to look up the patron's bill & fine record yourself. The bills and fines screens on Workflows are not easily interpreted. Believe it or not, your supervisors had to go through TRAINING to understand them. PLEASE do not give out bill and fine information to patrons, because what you plainly see on the screen is probably not accurate. The screen may say the patron has no fines when he does. Or it may say the patron has paid fines when she hasn't. And you know how some people are...they can get pretty snarly when they're given incorrect information. Especially when it concerns their money. Can't really blame them for that, can you?

Don't be shy!

When checking out a study room key, look that patron square in the eye, smile sweetly (Can you smile any other way?), and tell him/her that the key is due in two hours. This is valuable information for patrons to have, since they will be billed $10.00 when the key is just one minute overdue, and an additional $10.00 for each hour overdue after that. If you smile and tell them when the key is due, they just may smile right back at you. If you don't tell them when the key is due and they unknowingly return it late, they won't be smiling when they get their Bursar bill. What do you want in this world, more smiles, or more scowls? It's all up to you, you know. You're just that powerful.

An Exception to Every Rule

Well, not every rule, but some rules. For instance, we have a policy that groups using our study rooms must consist of at least five people. But if a professor comes to the desk and wants to use a room for office hours, check out a room to him/her if one is available, even if the group only consists of the professor and one student.

Sometimes breaking rules just makes good sense. Breaking this one makes sense because the Business Communication professors are housed in a galaxy far far away this year. They are fairly desperate for a place in the building to meet with students. If we have an empty room, then we can offer them that space. Note that we will NOT take reservations for these rooms. Professors using the rooms for office hours are on the same first-come, first-served basis as everyone else.

By the way, anytime you have a patron who asks you to go against policy for them, get your supervisor. Only supervisors can make the decision to go against the rules. Our salaries are bigger than yours, and that's one of the ways we earn them.

A bit of advice...

You know that your job duties include shelving and shelf reading, right? If you're unsure what one or both of these things are, or if you're not sure how to do shelving or shelf reading, see your supervisor. When you're ready to head to the stacks to do your work, be sure to let your supervisor know, so he/she can keep an eye on the circulation desk while you're away. Tally sheets are now posted on the staff bulletin board just inside the reserve room. After completing a shelving or shelf reading unit, have your supervisor initial the sheets so you get credit for what you've done.

Now here's the bit of advice: Don't wait until the end of the semester to complete the bulk of your shelving and shelf reading assignments. Be nice to yourself by doing some each week. It'll make your life much easier when finals time comes around. It'll also make it easier for our patrons to find what they want. After all, our #1 priority at BUSP is to serve our patrons, right? These people need us!

Uh oh, you've done it now...

...you forgot to clock in or out. Or both! No harm done. Just send Terry an e-mail (treynold@indiana.edu) or drop a note in her mailbox in the Reserve Room. Make sure you list your name, the date you worked, the time you came in, and the time you left. She'll see to it that your hours are added to your TIME record.