I'm alone on my shift or someone is missing. What should I do?
There should always be at least one other person on AskAway with you. If you're alone or short-staffed, your colleagues and the Admin Centre are here to help.
Daytime shift during the week (Monday-Friday 9am-5pm)
- Check the schedule. Which library should be staffing?
- If you're comfortable, contact the local coordinator and politely ask if someone can log on
- Each library's policy page has contact information for their local coordinator (scroll to the bottom)
- If you're not comfortable or you don't get a response from the library, contact the Admin Centre by phone or email
- If no one is available and the service is overwhelmed, use the Swamped button to request help from service providers
- Always let the Admin Centre know if an institution is missing so we can follow-up
Evening or weekend shift (Weekday after 5pm, Saturday, Sunday)
- Use the Short-staffed (evenings and weekends) button to send a message to the evenings-weekends@askaway.org list to let them know you're alone or short-staffed
- Click the button, enter the email address associated with your account on the AskAway website, and send out a call for assistance to the list
- The message will read: "Hello, AskAway is currently short-staffed. Is anyone available to log on and assist? Thanks! [Your name]"
- Note: You must be subscribed to the evenings-weekends list to use this button and send a message to the list
- If you don't receive a response quickly, move to the next step
- If no one jumps on to help, call or text the Admin Centre (Note: use Evenings & Weekends Emergency contact – Admin Centre email is not checked after office hours)
- If these steps don't work out or if at any time you're overwhelmed, use the Swamped button to request help from service providers
- Always let the Admin Centre know if an institution is missing so we can follow-up
For strategies to manage chats while you wait for help to arrive, see the FAQ "How can I make my shifts easier during busy times?"