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Ex-Schwingerkönig Ernst Schläpfer bickered with government councilor Christian Amsler.
Defeat for the Schaffhausen government: The Federal Supreme Court has decided that the files on the dismissal of the ex-Schwinger king Ernst Schläpfer (67) must be disclosed. Schläpfer was rector of the BBZ vocational school for 26 years and fell out with his superior, the then government councilor Christian Amsler (FDP).
If a former employee himself consents to the disclosure of the files, the government council cannot refuse this because of a non-disclosure agreement, the Federal Supreme Court held in its decision, which was published on Friday.
In this case, there are no public or private interests that would prevent disclosure. The activities of this executive employee are related to public tasks and are therefore subject to the principle of publicity.
Schwinger icon doesn’t mind the disclosure
The Federal Supreme Court thus agrees with the editor-in-chief of the “Schaffhauser Nachrichten”, who is now definitely allowed to view the files. The newspaper had requested access to all files related to Schläpfer’s dismissal in spring 2019, i.e. the personnel dossier, e-mails and minutes of meetings.
The government council did not want to disclose the documents. In November 2019, he refused access to the files because of “overriding private interests”. He has a duty of care to his employees. The publication of the documents could “massively jeopardize” the protection of privacy.
However, the person most affected, the dismissed rector Ernst Schläpfer, who was king of wrestling in 1980 and 1983, had no problem with the disclosure.
This was the main reason why the Supreme Court agreed with the newspaper. It instructed the governing council to disclose the files. Redactions are to be “concretely justified”. They are placed where other employees are mentioned.
No court costs for the canton
However, the government council went to the Federal Supreme Court and demanded that the decision of the Supreme Court be overturned. He didn’t want to reveal anything, not even with redactions.
The canton of Schaffhausen and thus also the administrative unit concerned are so small that anonymizing the files is not expedient anyway, the government council justified its move to Lausanne.
Despite the failure in Lausanne, the canton of Schaffhausen does not have to shell out any court costs. He has to pay the “Schaffhauser Nachrichten” 2,500 francs for the lawyer.
Schläpfer’s superior, then Education Director Christian Amsler (FDP), was finally voted out in the August 2020 elections. He had come under public criticism not only because of Schläpfer’s dismissal, but also because of irregularities at the cantonal school dental clinic. (SDA/jmh)