Taraba Rules Out Bullying at Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute

Bratislava, April 16 (TASR) - At a press conference on Wednesday, Environment Minister Tomas Taraba (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) denied that bullying has been taking place at the Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute (SHMU) and stressed that the institute should be about quality software and forecasts. "SHMU deserves to be a top institution, it deserves to have the best technology and software. I don't have even a pinch of desire to stifle any development of the institution," emphasised Taraba. The minister criticised the fact that the institute had almost 1,500 contract workers who allegedly observed when cherry blossom began to appear, for example, and were paid almost €700,000 a year for their work. "This is certainly not an amount for checking whether cherry trees are in bloom," said the minister, claiming that SHMU was also losing a number of contracts. SHMU employees warned last week of a crisis at the institute that threatens its professional integrity, operational capacity and international reputation. They highlighted forced lay-offs, budget cuts, staff disintegration, professional deterioration and a loss of trust in the institute's leadership. As a result, they addressed an open letter to the SHMU leadership, the Environment Ministry, the Government Office and the public. am/df