Bonum Certa Men Certa

Gross Violation of Workers' Rights in EPO: Denial of Christmas Vacation/Leave for Slower Workers

Blue short days and depressing atmosphere pave the way to suicides

Blue Santa



Summary: A look at an E-mail from within the EPO which shows how Christmas is used to squeeze staff, urging them to work even faster (despite speed gains) or lose their Christmas leave

Overzealous managers recently made more apparent their role in causing depression and maybe suicides, in violation of the spirit and the promise of the EPO to look after the welfare and health of its staff.



"Priority 1 [patent application] in stock [means] No Christmas leave," whine some examiners, but who can blame them? Thankfully we now have some evidence of that. Some people inside the EPO wish to draw "attention to an email of a DG1 director who was warning his directorate that he would not authorise Christmas leave to examiners having priority 1 files in their stock or a classification backlog."

So staff is supposed to be motivated by fear, induced by gross abuse of anything that an ethical body (law-abiding would be more like it) should follow.

See the E-mail below (emphasis below is ours):

From: Francesco Zaccà Sent: Friday, September 11, 2015 6:39 PM To: 1855_DIR_Directorate 1855; Brigitte Bettiol Cc: Grant Philpott; Lesley Gould; Eva Bleijs-Hortas Subject: newsletter 1855

ESSENTIAL:________________________________________________

Production January-August Very good results again: +7% in search, +24% in examination, +12.8% in total number of products. This gives me strong arguments for the envelope distribution exercise next month.

Priority 1 backlog This is also going quite well: as of today we have 33 late priority 1 files, plus 23 late B99s. Not bad, considering that estimate at least 20 of these are due to examiners just back (or not yet back) from holidays. The next challenge is to maintain this low numbers. In particular at the end of the year, with the Christmas holidays just when the numbers will be counted and recorded for the yearly objective achievement checks. So my instructions are:

  • From October, start working one month ahead, so deal with the prio1 before it becomes late, up to 1 month ahead.
  • By 01.12 nobody should have prio1 files with limit dates until 21.12, or late B99s, so work ahead.
  • No Christmas leave authorised if by the time of leaving the prio1 stock is employ until 31.12
  • Corresponding instructions for classification backlog


A few observations on the above are as follows:

  • the fact that the director puts in copy his principal director shows that he is sufficiently confident that his hierarchy will support him;
  • although the (questionable) current prioritisation of files is supposed to be applied with common sense, a dogmatic and authoritarian approach is implemented to turn the indicators of the directorate green;
  • the production results of the directorate, qualified as very good by the director himself, did not prevent him from putting the examiners under pressure;
  • the obvious negative effect of the threat on the well-being of the examiners, especially those leaving regularly to their home country for Christmas to visit their family, if considered, did not stop the director*;
  • the resentment generated by the issue of such a threat - whether or not carried out - can only lead to high(er) tensions between examiners and the director


Is the taste for management by fear, isolation and punishment spreading towards lower echelons? It is not only prejudicial to staff's health and well-being, it is also a very inefficient way of managing people in a knowledge-based organisation of the 21st century like ours. In such conditions who will be willing to come to work (and continue working) at the EPO? Has this crossed management's mind? Do they care? _____` * Will the director ask the examiners to come also when the Office is closed, i.e. between 24 December 2015 and 1 January 2016?...


We actually enjoyed seeing terms like "number of products", which reinforce our criticism (recent and older) of the EPO's view that it's just a production/assembly line rather than quality-based examination with rigorous rules and many rejections (usually after success prior art searches). Under Battistelli the EPO can become just another laughing stock (for quality) like the USPTO.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft Windows "Market Share" Measured Around 2.7% in Iraq, Plunges to 6.5% in Saudi Arabia
Microsoft isn't on the agenda in Iraq
Video: The Rise of GNU/Linux and Free Software as Seen by RMS in 2004
DTP's founder argued that when Windows goes below 85% "market share", it'll lose its grip in the monopoly sense
When (Almost) One-Man Operations Are Disguised as Medium-Sized Companies
the CEO hides in the US (hiding from his ex-wives, 4 daughters from those wives, and Sirius staff that he defrauded)
Microsoft Actually in Trouble, Microsofters Unable to Obey Judges' Orders
For the second time in a week, Microsofters are unable to obey orders
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
 
Next Month 'New Techrights' Turns Two
Next month, on the fourth week, it'll be 2 years since the migration
Operating Systems' Statistics in New Zealand: GNU/Linux Up, Windows Down to All-Time Lows
Remember all this when the media says that Microsoft became like 10 times more valuable in those 15 years (from 400 billion to 4,000 billion in alleged "worth")
GNU/Linux Share in Sweden Has Doubled Since PewDiePie, A Swede, Recommended It
months ago he moved to GNU/Linux, then told others to consider doing the same
GNU/Linux Hits Record High in Portugal
GNU/Linux picking up in Portugal
Gemini Protocol is Not Dying, It's Growing
When people say things like "Gemini Protocol is dying" the data does not support them
GNU/Linux is Thriving This Summer
It is meanwhile acknowledged, even by Microsoft pushers, that many GNU/Linux PCs will get sabotaged next month
The End of Microsoft's Reign in Spain: Windows Falls to All-Time Lows in Spanish Web Traffic
Windows sank to new lows in Spain
The Bots Never Sleep: In The Weekends, Slopfarms Dominate Google News, Majority of Entries in Google Are Fake Articles About 'Linux'
Google is fast becoming an ocean of plagiarism; the same goes for Google News, which was supposed to have extra quality control
Russia's Yandex Has Caught Up With Bing in Terms of "Market Share"
Microsoft has been firing loads of Bing workers for over 2 years already
Canada: GNU/Linux Up to Records Highs, Windows Down to Record Lows
Microsoft already announcing some plans to shut down Vista 11
Gemini Links 02/08/2025: Transducers in Typed Racket and American ISPs
Links for the day
Links 02/08/2025: Microsoft Already Kills Vista 11 SE, Smartphone Sales Down, Truth Gets "You're Fired!" in the US
Links for the day
Russia: GNU/Linux Rises to Highest Adoption Level Since Invasion of Ukraine
Moving up in the north
Microsoft's Latest Financial Report: We "Gained" 300 Million Dollars in "Goodwill" and Liabilities Grew by 32 Billion Dollars
Microsoft's debt has reached an all-time high
The Register US = The Register MS
Formerly The Register UK
Weeks After Microsoft Shut Down Its Operations in Pakistan Windows Falls to All-Time Lows
Only less than a month ago it was quietly revealed, based on laid-off staff, that Microsoft shut down in Pakistan
Criminal Behaviour is the Standard Operating Procedure at Microsoft
In the future I'll be able to tell how, when dealing with SLAPPs from Microsofters, their Microsoft services failed me and sometimes even blocked my contacts
GNU/Linux Rises to All-Time Highs in Europe
many people will get fired for buying Microsoft
All-Time Highs for GNU/Linux on the Client Desktop/Laptop, Based on Steam Survey
GNU/Linux rose to 2.89% in Steam
Links 02/08/2025: Blaugust 2025 and "Russia Declares Navalny Memoir ‘Extremist’"
Links for the day
Free Software is Not a Business Model
Go ahead, ask your friend, "how do you plan to monetise your children?"
LLM Slop Harms Real Literature, Real Web Sites, Real Journalism
LLM slop is a parasite and it'll run out of legitimate outputs
Upcoming OSI Scandal Series
The OSI is a rogue actor because it serves Microsoft in exchange for money
Slopwatch: The Issue Persists, But the Consensus in the Media Changes as Google Enrages It With LLM Plagiarism
We've meanwhile assessed the latest output from Linuxiac
IRC Proceedings: Friday, August 01, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, August 01, 2025
Links 02/08/2025: İstanbul Retail Inflation Reaches 42.48%, US FBI Opens Office in New Zealand
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/08/2025: ZFS, LLM Hype, and Fake Modules
Links for the day
Links 01/08/2025: Health, Conflict, and Attacks on Freedom of the Press
Links for the day
Microsoft's Debt Exploded by 15.4 Billion Dollars in the Past 9 Months Alone (Despite All the Layoffs)
As of minutes ago, at 6PM on a Friday, the numbers are made public
Meeting (Webchat) With Maria Arranz Gomez, Florian Grundies, Jürgen Janda and Konstantinos Kortsaris Confronts EPO Management About Breaking Promises and Crushing Workers
The lack of consistent messages suggests plans other than what's advertised and the lack of consultation (secrecy) likewise
Links 01/08/2025: "The Great British Firewall" and U.S. Army Sponsors Palantir
Links for the day
For Second Day in a Row, Top Story in The Register MS is "Microsoft Says"
The editor in chief exercises control over everybody else
LLMs as Attack Method Against Free Software and Programming
DDoS in "hey hi" (slop) clothing
Stability and Reliability, Backward Compatibility
I don't fancy relying on social control media as "sources"
What "the News" Looks Like in 2025
The "says" (or "sez") phenomenon
History Will Be Distorted, Sometimes Intentionally, Under the Guise of Intelligence (Manipulated/Curated Slop)
Militarised misinformation or military-grade chaff is a national security threat, even domestically
Financial Engineering Companies: A Company Worth 4 Trillion Dollars Would Not Borrow 100+ Billion Dollars at Interest Rates Like Today's
Many headlines perpetuate the lie Microsoft had just 2 waves of layoffs
Microsoft is Googlebombing "Linux" While Paying Former News Sites to Publish SPAM
How much lower will IDG sink?
Google as a 'Bullshit Generator' Disguised as Intelligence
It'll probably cause Google to get sued a lot, both by individuals and companies
As Expected, Google in the UK Now Experiments With Slop Instead of Web Search
At this point more people ought to stop and think: Does Google's search engine deserve trust?
The Data You Don't Give Away is Your Advantage
stop sharing data that does not need to be shared
Being Obedient or Doing the Right Thing
The world always changes for the better because of people who think "Outside the Box", not the cogs
Gemini Links 01/08/2025: Happy Hacking Keyboards and New Gemini Arrivals
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 31, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 31, 2025
Sabotaging Linux on Behalf of Microsoft With UEFI 'Secure' Boot (De Facto Remote 'Kill Switch'), Then Defaming, Stalking and Harassing Critics of 'Secure' Boot for 12 Years, Then SLAPPing Their Spouses and Them
The sorts of stubborn lunatics we've been dealing with
Moving on in Techrights, Geeks Gonna Geek
In the coming weeks we plan to focus (as we explained last week) on patents, GNU/Linux issues, and the occasional philosophical essays
Slopwatch: Google News Has Lost the Plot
Almost the majority of articles returned for "Linux" are fakes
Links 31/07/2025: Australia Restricts YouTube Access, Personal Privacy at Risk
Links for the day
Links 31/07/2025: Spotify Collapses and Spotify Now Forcing Some Users to Undergo Face-Scanning
Links for the day
A Lot of Supposedly "Successful" Businesses Are Just Debt-Racking Vessels Without Any Prospects of Financial Sustainability
The probability of bankruptcy of any business is more than 0%
theregister.com: The Voice of Microsoft US?
It basically sold out
Yes, You Can Love and Adore Things Whilst Also Criticising Them
Is society being divided and groomed/primed to be resistant to constructive criticism?
Links 31/07/2025: War in Ukraine, Security News, and Cyberattacks Against Journalists on the Rise
Links for the day
Gemini Links 31/07/2025: Fake Money and Gemini Diaries
Links for the day
An Illusion and Cult Worship of Magnitude (Ubiquity as "Victory")
GNU has been around for over 40 years and it'll likely continue to exist for another 40 (in some form)
Google: From Pointing to Relevant Sites to Pointing to Social Control Media to Actually Parroting Social Control Media as "Facts"
Google has become a misinformation company
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 30, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 30, 2025