Red rules? Green rules?

Post Reply New Topic

Last week, I had to attend a staff meeting that discussed the rules. One of the things that was discussed was how there are "red" rules and "green" rules (All of the rules are written in black ink, but I digress). Allegedly, "red" rules are ones we have to stand our ground on and not bend (no adults in the teen room, for example) and "green" rules are ones that can be flexible (no sleeping in the library, for example).

The problem is, it all seems a bit backwards. Take my examples: the teen room at all the public libraries in our system contains about 90% of the manga and graphic novels. Because the "no adults in the teen room" rule is a "red" rule, that prevents people over 18 from browsing the majority of our selection. Also, since "no sleeping" is a "green" rule, I can't wake people up when they sleep, and we had more than one occasion where someone wasn't actually sleeping, but instead were having a health problem and were unconcious.

What can I do with this? I tried discussing it with my supervisors, but they are adamant on these rules.

Seems like your thought-process is a bit misplaced.

Regarding the red-rule of no 18+ in the teen room, you seem to prioritizing a single instance of hypothetical need, such as an adult wanting to read manga, over the greater goal of keeping the teen room safe for teens. Teen safety seems like a higher priority than an adult's desire for manga.

Regarding the green-rule of people sleeping, the fact that it's a green-rule doesn't mean you CAN'T wake them up, it just means you're not REQUIRED to wake them up - you have discretion in the matter.

If some adult desperately needs a manga, find a way to help them acquire it, w/o needing to linger in the teen room. If someone is sleeping, you can choose whether or not to intervene, on a person by person basis.