There are new allegations against the recalled RBB director Patricia Schlesinger. The business magazine “Business Insider” reported on Friday, citing accounting documents, that allegedly retired RBB employees continue to receive a salary. Several cases have been listed, including one at the head of advertising subsidiary RBB Media.
At the request of the medium, RBB referred to a confidentiality agreement and did not provide any further information.
A research team from RBB also took up the new allegations and named payments in the case totaling more than 700,000 euros by 2026. About the employee in question it said: “According to information from the RBB research team, he formally still has a permanent position there today and is even standing in the vacation plan.”
“Business Insider” also went into the remaining list of management, which is now responsible for the station after Schlesinger’s departure due to numerous allegations. Administrative Director Hagen Brandstätter has recently been appointed Managing Director, his position as Administrative Director has been taken over by Human Resources Manager Sylvie Deléglise, who is said to have had something to do with severance pay rules – as has Legal Director Susann Lange.
According to Business Insider, the two women are said to be married to each other. The RBB emphasized that the relationship between the management and the committee chairmen was known. “Business Insider” also reported from a company meeting, according to which Deléglise is said to have disclosed the marriage to Lange, but both are now said to be separated.
An RBB spokesman also told the online medium that Deléglise was involved in the development of the bonus system in her previous role. “The initiative for this did not come from her, but from the board of directors.” The broadcaster informed the news agency dpa that the initiative had actually come from the chairman of the board of directors.
Like Schlesinger, the resigned chief inspector Wolf-Dieter Wolf has been accused of nepotism for weeks. Both rejected them. The Berlin Attorney General is investigating. An external investigation into a law firm is also underway.
The HR department is also entrusted with the final evaluation of target achievement, RBB told Business Insider. The management only disclosed the bonus system and the top salaries after massive public and internal pressure. Hagen Brandstätter then announced that they wanted to forgo bonuses this year and said they wanted to work towards an end to variable payments altogether with the board of directors.
The main committee of the Brandenburg state parliament and the media committee of the Berlin House of Representatives are now planning a joint hearing of the top broadcasters. A joint meeting on October 17 in the Berlin House of Representatives is proposed, according to a letter available to the Evangelical Press Service (epd).
In addition to Brandtäter, the deputy chairwoman of the RBB administrative board, Dorette König, the chairwoman of the broadcasting board Friederike von Kirchbach, the chairwoman of the staff council, Sabine Jauer, the chairman of the interest group for freelancers, Christoph Reinhardt, and the compliance officer of the station, Anke, should be heard Naujock-Simon.
In addition, the chairman of the media council, Martin Gorholt, and the director of the media authority Berlin-Brandenburg (maab), Eva Flecken, are to be invited.
The main committee in the Brandenburg state parliament also sent Brandstätter a letter with 18 questions on Friday, which he should answer by September 2nd. Among other things, this involves checking the targets as a prerequisite for the payment of the controversial bonuses.
The RBB crisis makes it necessary for both parliaments to accompany the work-up, explained the chairman of the main committee, Daniel Keller (SPD). There should be no ban on thinking about the restructuring of the RBB.
