Hospitals Government sees no possibility of stopping payments to hospital CEO

The Solothurn government sees no legal possibility of stopping the salary payments agreed until November to the CEO of Solothurn Hospitals, who resigned at the end of January. This is what the cantonal government writes in a statement published on Wednesday in response to an urgent request from the cantonal parliament.

In the June session, the cantonal parliament had declared a request from the SVP parliamentary group to be urgent, demanding that the cantonal government exercise its shareholder rights vis-à-vis Solothurner Spitäler AG (SoH) and "have Solothurner Spitäler AG cease all current payments to the former CEO with immediate effect".

The SVP had also demanded that "further payments should only be released with the approval of the Cantonal Council". In a three-page statement, the government explained that there were no legal possibilities to implement this. Even if the government council "understands the need for action expressed in the mandate".

Board of Directors decides

The sole shareholder of soH is the canton of Solothurn and the government can exert influence via the General Assembly. However, the Board of Directors decides on the termination of an employment contract and the associated financial arrangements.

Research by the "Solothurner Zeitung" revealed in June that soH CEO Martin Häusermann, who stepped down at the end of January, continued to receive a high salary until his 65th birthday in November. In addition, he is said to have received various functional bonuses in recent years - on top of a salary of over CHF 300,000.

As part of the resulting criticism of management salaries, the government already stated in July that soH's communication regarding Häusermann's departure was inadequate. In addition, an external investigation report on compliance with personnel regulations was commissioned, which should be available by the end of September.