«Everyone on holiday for the bridge, to work on August 15th»- Corriere.it

No, not from Renato Brunetta, the ex-minister who seeks out slackers, the warning letter sent to the leaders of the Ministry of Culture, who had massively gone on holiday during the long weekend of 25 April. To sign the letter, with a vaguely ironic tone, containing the invitation to be more present during the holidays, was the head of the dicastery: Gennaro Sangiuliano. Dear Directors – reads the letter -, I have noticed how many of you, with some praiseworthy exceptions, were on holiday on Monday 24 April.

It is legitimate to go on vacation, but not everyone

An observation that the minister would have made in person, while sifting through the dossiers accumulated on his desk, together with the head of the Cabinet and that of the Legislative, on the eve of Liberation Day. Each folder required clarifications from a person in charge of the procedure. And so, as in a story by Gogol, summoning one bureaucrat after another, Sangiuliano would welcome only two out of 11 into his office. Indeed one. Because the other had gone out to eat ice cream. Legitimate – now clarifies the minister, specifying that the letter was confidential – legitimate to go on break and even on vacation. But? But you need some common sense. We in the ministry are connected to the cultural system, which cannot be absent at certain times of the year. Never? The right question: everyone? No, not all. It would be enough for me to work. Shifts have to be organised. what is done in the newsrooms, right? observes the minister, recalling his experience as deputy director of Tg1, when he too covered the holidays in rotation.

The museums open on April 25th

In the letter, Sangiuliano gives the example of the forces of order, who are also required to remain on duty when the city empties out for the summer holidays. And as proof that the cultural circuit requires a punctual presence in those days, the minister rattles off the numbers of museums open on April 25: Pompeii, 27,587 admissions; Pantheon 23.622; Colosseum, 16.169; Royal Palace of Caserta, 11.305. To name a few. Yes, but what do the unions say? There were no official reactions. Some employees have written to me approving the recall. And I have also received positive messages from the opposition, he declares, but without naming names. And he confesses that he has in store an initiative to encourage attendance at holidays: to charge 50 cents more for museum admissions at Christmas, Easter and August 15th, tying the higher proceeds to an employee health insurance fund. Surprisingly showing up in museums, I found that there are prepared and passionate ones. I want to reward them.

The prize

No campaign against slackers, rather a reward system for those who are committed. I remember my doctor uncle who served in the emergency room at Cardarelli in Naples every December 31st, because it was necessary. These are the heroes. To clarify the concept, the minister has already invited his leaders to make a reconnaissance of the problems of the dicastery on August 15th. At lunch. Joking, she puts her hands forward: Let me be clear: I’m paying.