Staff working in RTÉ's Current Affairs unit expressed concerns over communication, fairness in promotional opportunities and gender equality in a workplace audit of the department.
In 2021, the broadcaster's director of human resources engaged consultants Resolve Ireland to undertake a review of the nature of the culture and working relationships within the unit.
Between 22 November 2021 and 16 December 2021, 45 members of RTÉ's TV Current Affairs unit were interviewed for the review.
The report states that the review was not an investigative process, that individual perceptions provided were accepted at face value and that no one was asked to provide proof in support of the comments made.
"A recurring theme was the perception that role changes and key decisions are made behind the scenes with a lack of transparency demonstrated," the report found.
"This appears to have added to the generally held viewpoints about the reasons for the departure of some high-profile leavers from Current Affairs in recent years."
"Women in Current Affairs are not perceived as having access to or having received the same number of opportunities as men," according to the report.
"It was commented that women often left because of not feeling valued or respected."
"It should be noted that this observation about a gender imbalance in terms of opportunities was made by both men and women," the report found.
Responding, RTÉ said that "there have been significant changes in TV Current Affairs in the past year, including the ongoing implementation of the report's recommendations".
Review finds many people felt 'defeated' by situation
Staff who took part in the process spoke about a fear of consequences for speaking up and also highlighted ineffective communications, as well as a lack of clarity and transparency around promotional opportunities and appointments.
The review described as "very concerning" the widespread expressions of distrust and significant unease about openly speaking about some of the issues noted.
"Equally, the very strongly expressed belief that corporate support would not truly be available to address these issues, or that nothing would change regardless of what is reported from this review, was striking," the report found.
"There was a definite sense that a lot of people in Current Affairs had reached a point of feeling defeated by the current situation," the review stated.
The effectiveness of teamwork amongst the producer/reporter pairings within Prime Time and RTÉ Investigates was raised as a recurring issue.
"It was viewed as somewhat of a systemic problem," the report states.
"Past difficulties in some pairings appeared to have resulted in a situation where editors are unable to successfully get some people to work with each other again and therefore choices are limited or forced, leading to friction in some pairings," according to the report.
The review found that there is a need to have a structured mechanism of feedback put in place, separate from pay and conditions-based discussions.
It also suggests that RTÉ take every opportunity to communicate clearly about all recruitment processes.
The report found that on a day-to-day level and, in the main, across the Current Affairs unit, most felt that there were no significant issues for them regarding the standards of dignity and respect in place within the department.
"Many spoke of past workplaces or historical experiences which they said were not a feature of the current workplace or working environment," the report found.
"While all accepted and noted that they operate in a robust and very fast-paced environment, they broadly felt that they were treated with dignity and respect by those they work alongside," it stated.
The broadcaster had initially refused a request to release the workplace audit following a Freedom of Information request on behalf of the RTÉ branch of the National Union of Journalists.
Following an appeal, the Information Commissioner ruled that RTÉ was justified in refusing access to parts of the report but not justified in refusing access to the remainder of the report.
The commissioner ordered the release of the report, while redacting any personal information related to identifiable individuals.
Today was the earliest possible time that RTÉ could issue the report following the Information Commissioner's ruling.
Review's findings accepted 'in full' - RTÉ
In a statement responding to the findings, the broadcaster said that "the review by Resolve Ireland took place in November and December 2021.
"RTÉ accepted the conclusions and recommendations of the report in full.
"There have been significant changes in TV Current Affairs in the past year, including the ongoing implementation of the report's recommendations".
In a statement, the NUJ said it was very disappointed that it required the intervention of the Information Commissioner to release the report.
"Its redacted publication has brought to light staff concerns about a working culture that has failed to address problems in communication, fairness in promotional opportunities, gender equality and the standards of dignity and respect that should be guaranteed to any worker," the NUJ said.
"The NUJ will be seeking a meeting with management to discuss the contents of the report and seek assurances on the implementation of its recommendations," the union added.
