Roger de Weck comments on redundancies at RSI
In Ticino, the layoff of 18 employees at the Ticino television station RSI has been making headlines for days. Labor unions have sharply criticized management’s methods. On Monday, SRG Director General Roger de Weck met with the RSI staff in Lugano Besso.
The visit by de Weck had been planned for some time, RSI announced in a communiqué on Monday evening. However, the Director General of SRG SSR also used the visit to comment on current events at RSI.
Last week, the Syndicom trade union had criticized the alleged lack of transparency in the dismissal of the employees, some of whom had been with the company for many years. They were allegedly asked to vacate their desks immediately - at the same time, e-mail accounts and parking cards were blocked, the Imprint union also reported last week. Long-time employees were treated like delinquents, the media union said.
Denial and insight
RSI director Maurizio Canetta, in a five-minute video published on the RSI site, denied the allegations. They are untruths that he firmly rejects, Canetta said. In the RSI program Modem, however, he then also admitted mistakes in the communication of the dismissals at the end of last week.
On Monday, Roger de Weck, together with RSI director Canetta, announced that they would analyze the discomfort of the Ticino staff in detail so that the dialogue and corporate culture could be strengthened again.
De Weck also justified the cost-cutting measures of CHF 40 million at SRG SSR, which were due to the lack of income from value-added tax and the higher fee share of regional stations. At the same time, the Director General praised RSI as the most productive enterprise unit, which also received the highest percentage of audience approval.
Ticino benefits from financial equalization
In Italian-speaking Switzerland, RSI is the second-largest employer after the canton - it employs over 1,000 people. In terms of population, Italian-speaking Switzerland is now a major beneficiary of financial equalization by language community in the public service sector.
Two television stations, three radio stations and a comprehensive Internet platform - with RSI, Italian-speaking Switzerland has one of the highest media densities in all of Europe. (SDA)
