Within the Northern Netherlands court, employees have a deep-seated mistrust. Researchers from management consultancy Berenschot conclude this in a report on culture within the court. The investigation was commissioned by acting court president Herman van der Meer. ANP and legal journal Mr. write about it.
The Northern Netherlands court has offices in Leeuwarden, Groningen and Assen. The report states that the longstanding sense of social insecurity must be broken by sharing information fairly and openly. In addition, Berenschot concludes that there is no culture in court of talking to each other about undesirable behavior, which creates a feeling of social insecurity for many. But according to the research bureau, there is no question of a culture of fear.
Five incidents
The reason for the research was an article in the journal Mr. in which employees complained about the working climate. The magazine was given access to the internal network of the court. Berenschot investigated five incidents that occurred last year, including the replacement of a company doctor and the simultaneous dismissal of three management assistants. This led to unrest in the court, after which court president Maria van de Schepop resigned in October due to a confidence issue.
According to Berenschot, the board of the court has failed in some occurrences in dealing with and communicating to individual employees and the rest of the organization. This has further increased the already existing social insecurity within the court. The research agency now advises the court to invest in transparent communication and an open culture.
In the coming days, the Berenschot researchers will explain their report in Assen, Groningen and Leeuwarden.
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