Employees testify to a culture of silence - criticism of the management of the Correctional Service

An already complex work environment made more difficult by a widespread culture of silence.

That is the picture that emerges in SVT's survey with the institutions' representatives at the Seko trade union.

We have received responses from 22 of the country's 34 class 1 and 2 institutions.

Recurring criticism concerns, among other things, that "the managers have each other's backs", that critics "end up in the freezer" and that career paths are closed to those who criticize the management.

The fear of questioning applies especially to temporary workers, according to union representatives.

Today, almost three out of ten of the country's 9,587 correctional officers do not have a permanent or probationary employment.

"Icy atmosphere"

The prison guard and Seko chairman Carl-Henrik Karlsson, who works at the class 2 institution in Kalmar, says that the local managers do not want to discuss criticism or misconduct.

- I don't think a week goes by without there being an icy atmosphere at a morning meeting when something uncomfortable comes up, or a manager having an outburst because someone is openly critical. 

The director of the institution, Hans Lagerlöf, says that he has seen elements of a culture of silence, or "anxiety culture" as he also describes it, but that those in the organization worked actively to deal with it.

- We have worked on this intensively.

We may not have fully succeeded.

I don't stand for any culture of silence, I hope no one else does either, he says.

Criticism of management

The management of the Correctional Service receives a lower rating in SVT's survey.

As many as six out of ten representatives of the correctional services say that the agency handles current challenges poorly or very poorly. 

Seko representatives believe that the management should be changed "immediately" and that "poor leadership" at the head office leads to poor leadership in the rest of the business.  

Correctional officer Peter Hemström is the local Seko chairman in Härnösand and represents, among other things, employees at the class 1 institution Saltvik in Härnösand.

He worries that the prevailing problems with both the work environment and the culture of silence will make recruitment more difficult when the Correctional Service has to recruit thousands of new employees in the coming years. 

- The management has enormous challenges for the future, he says.