Staff accuse Fribourg prison leaders of intimidation and overtime abuse

Employees have accused the leadership of Fribourg’s prison service of an authoritarian management style and improperly claiming overtime, SRF reported, citing an anonymous letter sent to the canton, a union and the media. The newspaper La Liberté first reported the allegations; SRF said it had also seen the letter.

The letter alleges that the prison director and several department heads recorded overtime unlawfully and took the hours as holiday leave. Former and current employees interviewed by La Liberté also criticised the director’s leadership. One said staff were afraid to speak to him, while another said they avoided him on arrival at work.

The public-sector union VPOD described what it called aggressive behaviour towards some employees. Union secretary Gaëtan Zurkinden said some young staff had left because of difficult working conditions and described the atmosphere as particularly oppressive at Bellechasse, one of the canton’s prison facilities, in Sugiez. The Central Prison in Fribourg is also part of the service.

La Liberté reported that a bullying case was opened against a member of the management this summer and that the person had been suspended. The canton declined to comment, citing staff privacy.

Olivier Kämpfen, secretary-general of the cantonal Directorate of Security, Justice and Sport, said it was difficult to assess the allegations because their source and authors were unknown. He said the directorate was investigating the claims with specialists but continued to support the prison director. Kämpfen said staff wellbeing and safety mattered to the canton, while adding that running a prison required a particular management style.

The anonymous letter also questioned overtime recorded by director Guido Sturny on a day when he attended a meeting of the Swiss Wrestling Federation, of which he is president. Kämpfen said Sturny had informed the cantonal government about the role and received its approval, and that his time spent on wrestling activities had been agreed with the canton. The union has called for an external investigation; the canton has not said whether it will commission one.