THUNDER BAY – Rent Panda founder and CEO Richard Togman has been chosen as the new CEO of the Thunder Bay Public Library.
Togman was hired following a national search and is expected to assume the role in early September. He’ll replace outgoing CEO John Pateman.
"I'm honoured to serve the community through the library. The library is a sacred place that many of us grew up with and depend upon. I'm excited to help grow the library and share my experience as an innovator and entrepreneur with a respected and beloved institution,” Togman said in a release.
“Thunder Bay should expect to see great things from their library over the coming years as we emerge from COVID and rebuild as a community of growth and opportunity with top tier public spaces."
Togman’s resume includes a stint as a research and policy co-ordinator with the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce, a consultant with the PARO Centre for Women’s Enterprises and a sessional lecturer at both Lakehead University and the University of British Columbia.
He was also a board member at the Thunder Bay Public Library.
It's that past that has union members representing library workers concerned.
Margaret Demillo, president of Local 3120 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said staffing shortages, which Togman helped initiate as a board member, have hampered library services.
“When a library doesn’t have enough staff, it reduces services for everyone. So library workers can’t forget that Dr. Togman was on the management team that laid off most of the library workforce when COVID hit,” Demillo said in a statement.
“Twenty of those layoffs turned out to be permanent and now the library struggles with staff shortages. I’m sure those laid-off workers, along with the rest of us, would like to hear how that action matches up with a strategy to grow the library."
Story has been updated with comments from library worker and CUPE represenative Margaret Demillo.
