Education, Training, and Library · Holland code CSR

Library Technicians

Assist librarians by helping readers in the use of library catalogs, databases, and indexes to locate books and other materials; and by answering questions that require only brief consultation of standard reference. Compile records; sort and shelve books or other media; remove or repair damaged books or other media; register patrons; and check materials in and out of the circulation process. Replace materials in shelving area (stacks) or files. Includes bookmobile drivers who assist with providing services in mobile libraries.

Also called: Library Assistant, Library Associate, Library Technical Assistant (LTA), Library Technician, Circulation Clerk, Library Aide, Library Clerk, Library Media Technician.

O*NET 25-4031.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $44,580; Middle half earn $35,740 to $52,430. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Bachelor's Degree; 30% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 3 of 5; Medium preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Reserve, circulate, renew, and discharge books and other materials.
Answer routine telephone or in-person reference inquiries, referring patrons to librarians for further assistance, when necessary.
Help patrons find and use library resources, such as reference materials, audio-visual equipment, computers, and other electronic resources and provide technical assistance when needed.
Deliver and retrieve items throughout the library by hand or using pushcart.
Process print and non-print library materials to prepare them for inclusion in library collections.
Catalogue and sort books and other print and non-print materials according to procedure and return them to shelves, files, or other designated storage areas.
Enter and update patrons' records on computers.
Issue identification cards to borrowers.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Reading Comprehension3.4 / 5
Active Listening3.3 / 5
Speaking3.3 / 5
Critical Thinking3.0 / 5
Learning Strategies3.0 / 5
Writing2.9 / 5

Knowledge areas

Customer and Personal Service4.1 / 5
English Language3.8 / 5
Administrative3.4 / 5
Computers and Electronics3.3 / 5
Education and Training3.2 / 5
Communications and Media2.8 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic35
Investigative28
Artistic10
Social51
Enterprising15
Conventional92

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

library manager · DE Bibliotheksleiter/Bibliotheksleiterin · FR directeur de bibliothèque/directrice de bibliothèque
archivist · DE Archivar/Archivarin · FR archiviste
collection manager · DE Wissenschaftlicher Sammlungsmanager/Wissenschaftliche Sammlungsmanagerin · FR gestionnaire de collections
exhibition registrar · DE Museumsregistrar/Museumsregistrarin · FR régisseur des collections/régisseuse des collections
librarian · DE Bibliothekar/Bibliothekarin · FR bibliothécaire
art handler · DE Sammlungstechniker/Sammlungstechnikerin · FR technicien en manipulation d’œuvres d’art/technicienne en manipulation d’œuvres d’art

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Senior officers in fire, ambulance, prison and related services (1163)8,000 employed
Librarians (2471)30,700 employed
Library clerks and assistants (4135)24,000 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€61,714
Germany	€59,529
Ireland	€56,877
Austria	€55,374
Netherlands	€53,595
Sweden	€43,567
France	€41,515
Spain	€35,735
Italy	€33,649
Portugal	€26,072
Poland	€14,380

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the middle third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +0.04. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (25-4031).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test