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Many academic libraries opened their doors in fall 2020 to support students after operations had been suspended due to COVID-19 the previous spring. Frontline employees returned in person while remote work remained standard for others. Staff encountered deficits, on-site isolation, the responsibility of enforcing new protocols, short-tempered patrons, and unprecedented workplace stress.

At the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), staff who served on-site throughout the pandemic still feel the effects of this crucible, even as the library assesses and implements hybrid models to meet the needs of students. Concurrent is a need for leadership to do the same for its vulnerable frontline staff, whose physical and mental well-being suffered over the last 3 years.

In the waning months of university-mandated COVID-19 protocols (spring 2023), the UIC Library conducted its biennial survey to assess library impact on its students. Results revealed frustration with hours, services, and health and safety. Administration immediately discussed what could be done to improve impressions of library culture, but that student survey tells only one side of the story.

This chapter presents the results of facilitated discussions with frontline staff, often people from underrepresented groups, who speak to the other side of navigating the pandemic. It also interrogates how leadership can do more to provide essential employees with support during and postcrisis to protect them from burnout, aggressive and unreasonable patrons, and the stress of doing more with less. Staff voices balance existing student narratives and call for a healthier environment to better serve everyone within the library.

It is crucial to be cognizant of institutional values and the wider higher education aspirations of the higher education institution where one works and ensure that they are aligned to one's own personal value and belief systems. ”Scholars at Risk” maintains that equal access, responsibility, autonomy of institutions, freedom of academics and community and social responsibility are core values of higher education that are informed by human rights and UNECSO instruments. Through academic freedom, there is ability to conduct one's teaching and research and disseminate opinions about work systems without internal controls. However, with institutional autonomy, organizations are able to govern efficiently and make decisions regarding social values, equity, access and academic freedom at the institution. Social responsibility and accountability is demonstrated through the ethical and professional standards adopted by the institution and through clear and transparent guidelines established regarding equitable access and support for students and staff that are merit-based and are inclusive of all sections of the population. This chapter will underscore the rationale for the alignment of institutional core values with individual academics and their personal value systems for optimized performance and success in academic careers.

Due to increasing interest in sustainability, consumers prioritize environmentally friendly consumption across various service sectors. This study aims to examine how environment-related attributes of food delivery services affect customer behavior. Specifically, the authors use the stimulus-organism-response framework to explore how environmentally friendly food packages correlate with customers’ environmental support and patronage behavior.

The authors collected data from US food delivery service customers. To test the hypotheses, the authors used partial least squares structural equation modeling.

The authors find that customers’ perceptions of the environmental friendliness of food packages influence their satisfaction and trust, which in turn affect their environmental support and patronage behaviors. Also, customers’ trust and satisfaction mediate the relationship between their food consumption experience and its outcomes. The authors further explore demographic factors that influence the proposed relationships.

Due to the popularity of food delivery services, this study has theoretical and practical implications for restaurant service providers and highlights the potential of environmentally friendly packaging to increase both environmental support and loyal behavior.