Resignation letters from City of Fargo communications employees describe ‘toxic’ workplace

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — The City of Fargo’s Communications team is down four employees after they submitted their resignations. Their reasoning, the department’s toxicity, and the lack of support for its employees.

Those stepping down are Chief Communications Officer Gregg Schildberger, Deputy Chief Communications Officer Katie Ettish, Creative Services Director Ryan Green, and Project Manager Emily Groth.

“The stress, anxiety, lack of support, and harassment that has occurred over the last five months have been nothing short of debilitating for our team, especially its leadership group…This is not only a recipe for disaster; rather, it is the roadmap for personal and professional strangulation. This has resulted in a hostile work environment with toxicity interlaced at many levels.” – Chief Communications Officer Gregg Schildberger

In his letter, Schildberger described being on-call 24/7 for the job. Schildberger points out that the Finance, Administration, and Human Resources department has not recognized the Communications team or their concerns.

Ettish shared in her letter of resignation that working in a daily toxic work culture by the Administration and Human Resources department made it impossible for her to continue to work. She specifically noted that her choice to leave was made not by the most recent incidents but by the workplace environment.

“Over time, experiences like these change a person – they change how you work, how you parent, how you sleep, and how you live. I have repeatedly raised concerns regarding my safety and well-being related to a coworker’s behavior. These concerns were not abstract – they were real, repeated, and distressing. And yet, they were ignored.”- Katie Ettish

Ettish also mentioned an instance that left her devastated after a public meeting on May 14th involving City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn, who had berated her and another staff member as they were running the meeting.

“As we attempted to coordinate with the Fire Chief, who was speaking with the commissioner at the time, the commissioner berated us in front of other commissioners and senior staff. When this was brought to the attention of City Administration, no action was taken.” – Katie Ettish

When asked for comment, City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn responded, “Nope.”

All four resignations are set for August 17th at 11:59 p.m.