Fee madness: Luxury pensions devour örr budgets!

The risk of pension provisions on the piling up is drastically shown by the Südwestrundfunk (SWR), which is almost broke. In 2022, the station's equity was on a deep red minus of 233 million euros. The Baden-Württemberg Court of Auditors explains dryly: "This is essentially due to the increased pension provisions for years." Luxury pensions and financial instability are so obvious.

high salaries and even higher pensions

But that's not the end of the flagpole. The lush salaries of the ÖRR executives speak a clear language. The director of the WDR, Tom Buhrow, collects an impressive 413,000 euros annually - even though his station fights with financial needs. No wonder that the ÖRR institutions increasingly have to restrict their variety of programs in order to shoulder these enormous financial burdens.

But what about those responsible? The Berlin-Brandenburg Rundfunk (RBB), known for its lax control mechanisms, is particularly freely. Here directors get their retirement even if they have only spent a single working day in office. Scandalous, but unfortunately anchored in the system.

Savior in need?

It seems that the kings of the radio palaces sit on a shaky throne despite their magnificent reserves. The supervisory bodies are required to finally do their homework before more fee payers are robbed of their last hopes. The question remains: how much luxury does the public law really tolerate?