Fargo PL director returns to turmoil

摘要

Controversial Fargo (N. Dak.) Public Library Director Dave Davis returned to work May 12 after a 30-day medical leave of absence and months of tense relations with staff. Davis had requested the leave in mid-April after city officials reprimanded him for making an "insulting and degrading" comment to a pregnant staff member and ordered him to seek employee-management counseling. Mayor Bruce Furness told the May 6 Fargo Forum that Davis "has done what we've asked him to do" and expressed hope that problems would be resolved. Employees have claimed that Davis's tenure since March 1999 has been marked by staff alienation, high turnover, and poor management decisions. The situation had become so critical that trustees issued an apology to employees and the public April 20 for allowing internal problems "to disintegrate and for contributing to the current animosity" between director and staff, the Forum noted April 21. Several former employees had appeared on a local television news program April 9 claiming that Davis had created a hostile work environment by making inappropriate and insensitive remarks. Public concern was again heightened April 29 when the paper reported that a directive by Library Board Vice Chairwoman Virginia Dambach warned employees not to make any of their grievances public, lest it be construed a violation of city policy. Brenda Kaspari, a local conflict-resolution consultant hired by the library board, began meeting with the staff in both group and individual sessions the first week in May to identify workplace problems. Joan England, a former Fargo PL reference librarian who was brought in as acting director when Davis went on leave, told American Libraries that "the staff has been very eager to meet with her, and the sessions have been going very well." Kaspari will present a report to the board at a future meeting.