Head of the KDH party and former transport minister Jan Figel is having to answer for the large golden handshakes received by some people put into top posts by his party, which are classed by current transport minister Jan Pociatek as excessive.
One example is that of head of the Slovak Post Office, Marcela Hrda, who could enjoy a fat bonus of EUR 178,000 as there is no bonus cap set out in her contract, and so she is perfectly entitled to take the money, which minister Pociatek compared to 25 years of salary for an average postman.
Figel admitted on the political talk show V Politike that the contract was badly set up and that he had no way of knowing what kind of bonus would be produced from the year-end financial statements when he signed the contract. Figel said current minister Pociatek can deal with it as neither the statements nor the money has been approved or paid out.
Another case concerns the state rail company ZSSK, where former head Pavol Kravec could get a similar EUR 170,000 for less than a year in the job. Figel admitted today that other board members in the rail companies ZSSK and ZSSK Cargo also received over-generous bonuses, while condemning them as unacceptable.
Ironically, the big bonus system was introduced by the former government (2006-2010) led by Robert Fico, and even though the short-lived government of PM Iveta Radicova got ministries to pledge to change the system, it wasn’t applied or checked systematically. Figel blames the companies, not forgetting to point out that the bonus system arose under Fico’s previous term.
Bonuses! What is all this then? It would appear every public employee gets bonuses – heads of state businesses, police, teachers and non-job pen pushers. What for? doing their job? You never hear of the incompetent and lazy having their wages cut.
I / we didn’t read the contract – what a convincing defence.
Bobby no Mates fault – Yeah right!
It’s a never ending gravy train for public sector workers and it would appear that political appointees to management boards are onto a nice little earner irrespective of how ill-qualified, brain dead and useless they are.
The employment demographics for this country are horrific, with a population less than some of Europes’ major cities, one in three of the workforce is employed and paid by the state. That would be fine if the country ran like a fine Swiss watch but it doesn’t, very little gets done.
Government, both National and local pleads poverty yet quite happily pays out ridiculous bonuses to people for doing ( not doing) the job their paid to do and you can bet that this will not change under BnMs leadership.
Raise taxation, introduce levies, increase duty – the easy options.
Reduce staffing, increase efficiency, cut costs – No! thats not the socialist solution and far too hard for the current bunch of clowns in power.
It won’t be long before the Sk joins Greece – down and out!
Yea right Figel……. whoops me missed reading the guy I had appointed, working contract, but it was really all the previous Governments & Fico`s fault ???….
BTW . Sold that nice Old Town flat you got for almost nothing, as a member of the elite KDH party and was then just about to pocket to yourself the 250,000 euro, until some News Reporter pointed out your utter total two faced hypocrisy ?