Patricia,

Is it possible that you can work out incentives beyond the wage for your
guides?  If your institution has good relationships with other area
historic sites, working a reciprocal free admission policy for your
respective staffs might help, especially if you target older docents.  For
high school/college students, perhaps you could rework the job description
to make it more of an internship as opposed to simply being a tour guide.
I worked for a small institution on an undergraduate internship earning
only $5.70/hour, but because it was an internship I gained experience in
collections, research, and exhibitions.  Every intern had to work on a
project to help update the permanent exhibition.  Of course, this requires
a dedicated person, but you may just turn someone on to the museum field.

Lots of luck,

        George Garner
        Exhibits Assistant
        Gallery Association of New York State

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