The Baltimore County Public Library’s CEO announced Monday night that the system’s human resources director has departed in the wake of an uproar over the firing of part-time librarians, which was quickly rescinded.

Robin Linton, of Owings Mills, had worked at the library for a year and nine months. Her departure is part of the continuing fallout from library leadership’s initial decision to dismiss 14 part-time librarians on Wednesday. Their managers immediately escorted them out of the building, with little time to say goodbye to colleagues they’d known for decades.

“I recognize the recent decision made around the phase-out of the part-time librarians did not go as planned. For this, I take full responsibility and once again share my apologies. You have my commitment to making it right,” CEO Sonia Alcantara-Antoine wrote to employees in a statement late Monday. “Effective today, Robin Linton is no longer employed by the Baltimore County Public Library as Human Resources Director. This decision reflects our responsibility towards taking meaningful steps to rebuild confidence and trust within this organization.”

The CEO’s message does not specify whether Linton was fired, was asked to resign or left on her own. Library officials said they would make a statement at the library board’s Tuesday meeting. They declined to comment Monday evening.

IAM Local 4538 president Anita Bass said the Linton move doesn’t go far enough.

“Sonia needs to go,” Bass said of the chief executive officer. “Since 2021, she has been against the union — fighting us at every turn. Firing the HR director? They both need to go. Sounds like the plan is to blame it all on Robin Linton.”

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Baltimore County Public Library lays off 14 part-time employees

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Bass said the librarians returned to work Monday after an emotional roller coaster of a few days. Alcantara-Antoine dismissed them as a group over Zoom on Wednesday, and Bass launched a counter-offensive to get them reinstated. Within hours, library board members said they had no knowledge of the dismissals and were committed to making things right.

Four councilmen — Democrats Mike Ertel, Izzy Patoka and Julian Jones, as well as Republican David Marks — began calling board members as well as Alcantara-Antoine to voice their disappointment. County Executive Kathy Klausmeier said she was “deeply concerned,” but added that the library is governed by a board and not the county executive.

On Friday, library officials announced that Alcantara-Antoine had rehired all 14 part-time librarians. The library system acknowledged that the “process was not handled with the respect and transparency our part-time librarians deserved.”

According to library officials, Alcantara-Antoine had planned to phase out the part-time librarian positions, which the previous administration had committed to do. That was to be done through attrition; the positions are funded through June 30, the end of the fiscal year. The abrupt dismissal two weeks before Thanksgiving alarmed the librarians and their families, some of whom were already reeling from the federal government shutdown and associated events.

“Yes, they’re back at work, but they’re shaken” said Bass, a library employee until her recent retirement. “They’re not going to trust anyone — they’re looking over their shoulder. They feel like they have a target on their back.”

Former library staffer Nicole Dvorak told the County Council on Monday evening that library management retaliated against employees and supervisors who attended board meetings, even in cases where they did not speak. Bass asked the council to help force Alcantara-Antoine from her position, though she acknowledged that the council was limited in its power in this regard. The library’s 2025 operating budget was $51 million, which includes $41 million in county funding.

Councilman Izzy Patoka said that he’d heard from several of the dismissed librarians and that the council would carefully review the library’s budget in light of recent events.

The Baltimore County Public Library’s board of trustees will meet at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the Towson branch. Alcantara-Antoine is expected to address the dismissal as well as other matters that have frustrated both librarians and the board.