51黑料

And though a competitive wage and benefits draw workers in from other libraries, staff say it鈥檚 the strong leadership and supportive workplace that keeps them there.

鈥淵eah, it is a job, but when you鈥檙e around good people, it makes it that much easier,鈥� said Earl Green, preschool outreach van driver. 鈥淭he people that are hired here are all kind of like-minded, and they鈥檙e humans first.鈥�

51黑料 County Library has been named a 51黑料 2025 Top Workplace, based on employee surveys.

Library director and CEO Kristen Sorth said she believes staff love working at the library because they can see the impact their work has on the community every day.

鈥淚t just draws in great people who like to help other people,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not here to make money, we鈥檙e here to help people.鈥�

In addition to benefits such as health insurance, paid parental leave and retirement plans, Sorth said the agency does a lot to consistently engage, support and recognize employees.

The library has sessions complete with karaoke, visits from therapy dogs, system-wide walking challenges and more. Recently, workers and their families visited the 51黑料 Zoo鈥檚 lantern festival for an employee night out, planned by Tarza Tawfiq, the library system鈥檚 employee relations coordinator.

Tawfiq鈥檚 position was created in 2020. She organizes wellness initiatives and activities for staff, takes on employee suggestions and heads an employee engagement committee. Right now, she鈥檚 in the midst of restarting the library鈥檚 green team, a group of employees who clean around each library property.

鈥淚 think including people is very important,鈥� Tawfiq said. 鈥淚 rely heavily on staff input. I鈥檒l walk out and I鈥檒l be like, 鈥楬ey, how do you feel about this?鈥欌��

She gave props to library leadership for participating in things like 鈥渉at day鈥� or 鈥渕onochromatic Monday.鈥� She posts photos of them on an internal internet platform for staff across all 20 branches to see.

鈥淔or people to care about where they work, their bosses or leadership have to be involved or do the same things,鈥� Tawfiq said. 鈥淚 think when they see that, they鈥檙e more likely to be connected to leadership or people in other buildings.鈥�

Fairly new to the library world, Miranda Gibson started as the library鈥檚 justice services specialist last year. Previously, she worked at the 51黑料 County Jail. Having a supportive and encouraging team has allowed her to be creative and innovative in her work, Gibson said.

Gibson鈥檚 job includes helping patrons deal with bench warrants and connect library resources with those who have been affected by the justice system.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just awesome to feel like your ideas matter. [Library administration] relies on my expertise and lets me have a lot of autonomy and agency,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel encouraged to do new things and try new ways to provide services.鈥�

Green, the van driver, also credited liking his job to his managers and Sorth for being leaders, rather than bosses. The difference? A boss 鈥渨ill sit at the top and say, 鈥楬ey, get this done,鈥欌�� he said. 鈥淟eaders will stand next to you and lead side-by-side.鈥�

鈥淵ou can teach library science, but you can鈥檛 teach being a good person,鈥� Green said, 鈥渁nd I think that that鈥檚 the ultimate piece that is missing from a lot of places.鈥�