Fargo Board Apologizes
for Library Turmoil
The trustees of the Fargo (N. Dak.) Public Library 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 Dave Davis and library staff. According to the April 21 Fargo Forum, the apology was part of a statement that the board adopted to announce its strategy for dealing with the controversy over Davis’s treatment of workers. Earlier, the board had hired a consultant to assess workplace problems and propose solutions.
After the trustees refused to do so, Davis was reprimanded by city officials in mid-April for making an “insulting and degrading” comment to a pregnant employee, who subsequently brought a sexual-harassment lawsuit against him. However, the city attorney determined that the suit was without merit.
The city personnel office is now considering a request for 30 days of medical leave by Davis, who has not been at work for two weeks. Board President David Martin told the Forum that the controversy came at a critical time for the library, which celebrates its centennial in May.
Posted April 24, 2000.
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