Allegations of ‘culture of fear and ‘bullying’ during Salmond office era
Allegations of “bullying” and a “culture of fear” have been made against SNP ministers in Alex Salmond’s era in office.
The report, compiled by trade union FDA, alleges civil servants who worked for ministers in the Scottish Government, and in particular the former first minister’s office, were afraid to speak out about inappropriate behaviour in the workplace.
The document does not name Mr Salmond, nor any other minister specifically, as being responsible for the alleged behaviour. In 2010, the Fairness at Work policy was implemented, and the union have claimed that “around this time, the culture within the former first minister’s office and other ministerial offices in relation to bullying behaviour became a concern for us”.
“Although action was taken andshort-termimprovements or apologies were made, this did not bring about an overall change in culture” the union report said.
The latest claims have been made in a written submission to the Holyrood inquiry examining how the Scottish Government handled harassment complaints against Mr Salmond.
The inquiry, which is being chaired by Linda Fabiani, starts its first hearings next week.