SÁÁ employees demand resignation of organisation’s board

Nearly all employees of SÁÁ, an addiction treatment organisation, have issued a no confidence statement against its chairman and executive board, demanding that they step down, mbl.is reported on Friday.

The statement follows news that Ásmundur Friðriksson had resigned from the board after a disagreement with its majority. Employees said the serious situation within SÁÁ could not be explained as normal management changes or isolated personnel matters.

Several key managers responsible for the organisation’s healthcare and treatment services have left their positions in a short period. Departing managers have also expressed serious concerns about the board’s involvement in the organisation’s professional work, according to the statement.

Employees said that, before the current developments, the situation at SÁÁ had been good. They said they were proud of the organisation’s development and progress and satisfied with the direction pursued under the leadership of Ragnheiður. New agreements had been an important milestone and a significant achievement for the organisation, creating opportunities to further develop and strengthen its services.

The employees said staff satisfaction had been higher than ever, in their view, and that there had been strong support for continuing the work that had begun.

They said the organisation’s progress, unity and positive development were now at risk. They wanted to continue following the professional direction that had been established and build on the results achieved under Ragnheiður and other professional managers.

The statement referred to comments by Valgerður Rúnarsdóttir, SÁÁ’s medical director. Employees said her concerns carried significant weight because she is one of Iceland’s most experienced doctors in addiction treatment and had publicly described the board’s involvement in professional healthcare work as unacceptable. She had also said she no longer felt able to work under the conditions the board intended to create.

Employees said the dispute was therefore not only about disagreements between individuals. In their view, it concerned SÁÁ’s governance, the professional independence of its healthcare services and the future of the important service entrusted to the organisation.

They said SÁÁ staff carried a substantial daily responsibility towards patients and their families and had a duty to respond when decisions and governance practices could threaten professional continuity, a peaceful working environment and trust within the organisation.

The employees called for clear answers about the departure of experienced key managers and their serious concerns about the board’s involvement in professional work. They said staff had not received an adequate explanation of how the situation had arisen, where responsibility lay or how the professional independence of healthcare services would be safeguarded in the future.

Trust could not be restored simply by declaring that the organisation’s work would continue, they said. It required transparency, accountability, credible information and respect for professional boundaries. In their view, trust had now been lost.