Purpose: This research aims to conduct a historical and documentary study of the processes of recruitment, retention, and maintenance of employees at the Central Library of Astan Quds Razavi during the Pahlavi era (1925-1979). The primary focus is on identifying the policies, methods, benefits, challenges, and organizational developments related to human resource management within this significant cultural-religious institution. The study seeks to elucidate how the interplay between traditional religious endowment practices and modern state bureaucracy shaped the library's workforce management strategies, ultimately aiming to derive historical insights applicable to contemporary human resource management in similar contexts.
Methodology: The present study employs a documentary research method, relying on archival documents. From an initial pool of 82,680 documents related to the library in the Astan Quds Razavi database, 11,879 documents pertaining to the administrative formations of the Pahlavi period were identified. After removing duplicates, a final corpus of 10,360 documents was subjected to comprehensive analysis and systematic note-taking. To ensure validity, the triangulation strategy was utilized, which involved cross-referencing primary sources, incorporating a diverse range of document types (e.g., official letters, regulations, payroll records), and consulting with subject matter experts. Reliability was assessed using the re-evaluation method and calculating Cohen's Kappa coefficient, which yielded a high agreement rate of 87%.
Findings: The findings are presented across three main themes: A. recruitment and Employment: The employment process evolved from traditional methods such as hereditary appointment and personal petition in the early Pahlavi period towards increasing bureaucratic formalization. This shift culminated in the ratification of the "Astan Quds Employment Bylaw" in 1968, which institutionalized criteria like educational qualifications, formal testing, and moral integrity. Various employment types were identified, including permanent, contractual (project-based, daily-wage, hourly), and honorary appointments. B. Retention and Maintenance: The compensation system transitioned from a mixed cash-in-kind structure in the late Qajar era to a fully cash-based salary system. While employees benefited from perks such as free healthcare, family allowances, rationed essential goods, and symbolic privileges (e.g., burial rights within the holy shrine precinct), significant sources of dissatisfaction stemmed from comparatively low salaries, delays in payment, and inadequate bonuses and rewards. Literacy programs and in-service training initiatives were also implemented, particularly during the second Pahlavi period. C. Discipline and Violations: Disciplinary actions followed a graduated approach, progressing through stages: verbal warning, salary deduction, temporary suspension, compulsory transfer, and ultimately, dismissal.
Conclusion: The human resource management of the Astan Quds Razavi Library during the Pahlavi era evolved at the intersection of religious-endowment traditions and the modern centralized state bureaucracy. This interaction created a dual and transitional model, where spiritual motivations and the unique privileges of a religious institution coexisted with material shortcomings and efforts at administrative standardization. The study concludes that the key to a sustainable and effective workforce in cultural-religious institutions like this library lies in simultaneously addressing the spiritual and identity-based dimensions of work while ensuring fair and sufficient provision for employees' material and welfare needs. The historical framework provided by this research can inform the development of human resource policies in similar contemporary institutions.