Flexible working hours for academic librarians in Nigeria

Abstract

In order that librarians may achieve research success within the academic environment, a convenient working schedule equivalent to that of teaching colleagues is a sine qua non . To investigate this issue, a descriptive survey, including a questionnaire, was used to examine the opinions of selected academic librarians on the issue of flexible working hours, in order to establish whether present (inflexible) working arrangements have any effect on the publication output of librarians in Nigeria. The study revealed that the potential benefit of flexible working arrangements is widely accepted among academic libraries. The paper concludes by suggesting that a wider study be carried out that would seek the views of library directors or administrators in Nigeria on the implementation of this new working arrangement, in order to tackle a problematic issue for academic librarians.