INVESTIGATION. "I thought about suicide": agents denounce the "method" Schwartz, between brutal management and physical violence

The former mayor of La Riche and president of the metropolis of Tours, Wilfried Schwartz is in the crosshairs for his excessive management exercised in the communities The conviction of the former elected official on appeal for a slap addressed to his former chief of staff at the Metropolis would only be the tip of the iceberg

Fifty-seven, they are fifty-seven to have left La Riche since 2019 out of the 217 agents who work daily in this town in the agglomeration of Tours, in Indre-et-Loire The drain of brains and good souls has become an incessant refrain in this city of 10,000 inhabitants

This number was even increased to sixty in December 2022 with the departure of three new agents; decided to leave the community permanently: the director general of services, the assistant director of technical services and the person in charge of green spaces According to a dozen exclusive testimonies obtained by France 3 Centre-Val de Loire, the "authoritarian and sometimes violent management" of the former mayor and president of the metropolis of Tours, Wilfried Schwartz, would be at the origin of these cascading departures

Proven employees Some agents no longer supported the methods of this young elected official with a dazzling career and his team In the Pays de la Loire, in other communities in Indre-et-Loire, in the south of France, they have fled as far as possible to no longer have to undergo this management which they consider "toxic"

This is the case of an ex-agent contacted by telephone: “I was put in the closet little by little, it started in 2016 My missions have been deleted one after the other

On an organizational chart, everyone was there except me I was arrested for 6 months…I had a psychological block, I thought about suicide but luckily I was well balanced in my relationship

" Fortunately there was solidarity between the agents but they always thought that there would be a drama, a misfortune, a suicide, one day" A former anonymous administrative framework Even his bell on the side of this former administrative framework: "Several agents underwent changes of office, withdrawals of delegations and directions of service, overnight, without there being an interview prior

" The testimonies paint the portrait of a man whose behavior would capsize in a second “There is a kind of transformation in a flash: 'You're pissing me off, get out!' If you did not go in his direction, you were against him

" The former mayor of La Riche would not have hesitated to intimidate to establish his authority either A former municipal police officer tells how Wilfried Schwartz would have humiliated guards of peace while they were discussing with an elected opposition member at the exit of the municipal council, on November 17, 2020

After a brief clash, the president of the Metropolis would have added "I am the leader, your hierarchical manager If I ask you to do something, you do it", and demanded that the municipal policemen run around the village hall "until I say stop!" The "method" Schwartz For others agents, Wilfried Schwartz does would not have been alone in acting, and some members of his entourage also have a harmful influence

Like this member of the cabinet who, according to them, "amplified the phenomenon She managed to bring out the black beast that is in him

Between them it's the infernal couple" Contacted by France 3, the former socialist mayor of La Riche, Alain Michel, who had supported Wilfried Schwartz to manage his succession, now denounces what, according to him, is a "method" of brutal management

I got a lot of testimonies quickly then I did my personal investigation I was appalled by the number of overdue agents

There is violence in the relationships and threats I know there was an audit but it is under 'secret defence'

Alain Michel, former PS mayor of La Riche And to add: "When we look at the judgment of the Orléans Court of Appeal following the slap [Editor's note: the case of the slap addressed to his former chief of staff in the Metropolis , Albin Herbette], we see that this behavior was one element among others In fact, it is the abnormal functioning of a person

Look at the metropolis, it's surreal I was wrong but I don't I didn't realize it

He's a liar You can't trust a liar

At some point, the truth comes out " "There was a presumption of guilt" Joined several times by France 3 since November 7, 2022, Wilfried Schwartz refused a filmed interview and several invitations to speak live between November and January

At his request, the former president of Tours Métropole was finally able to react to these testimonies and give his version of the facts on the set of France 3 Center-Val de Loire this January 11 According to him, the slap inflicted on his former chief of staff, which earned him a conviction and sparked controversy, was and remains a "fiction", and the whole affair was carried out with a "presumption of guilt" at against him

Wilfried Schwartz also castigates the testimonies of the agents accusing him of brutal management, ironically on the "very courageous remarks expressed on condition of anonymity" and puts forward a satisfaction survey that he would have commissioned himself "80% of La Riche agents feel good about their job," he says, without we were able to consult the document

At the same time, Wilfried Schwartz announced that he would withdraw his appeal in cassation and "leave all political office" denouncing a "media frenzy" and "political blows" aimed at him The Court of Cassation confirms this withdrawal, which took place on January 6, and which it should take note of in a decision rendered on January 20

In the so-called "slap" case, Wilfried Schwartz would therefore remain, if his appeal in cassation were indeed canceled, on his conviction on appeal in September 2022: 6 months of ineligibility and a fine of 5,000 euros At the Métropole de Tours, he will be replaced as advisor by Rabia Hadjidj-Bouakkaz

Wilfried Schwartz has announced that he will withdraw his appeal in cassation and "leave all political office" denouncing a "media frenzy" and "political blows" aimed at him The Court of Cassation confirms this withdrawal, which took place on January 6, and which it should take note of in a decision rendered on January 20

In the so-called "slap" case, Wilfried Schwartz would therefore remain, if his appeal in cassation were indeed canceled, on his conviction on appeal in September 2022: 6 months of ineligibility and a fine of 5,000 euros At the Métropole de Tours, he will be replaced as advisor by Rabia Hadjidj-Bouakkaz

Wilfried Schwartz has announced that he will withdraw his appeal in cassation and "leave all political office" denouncing a "media frenzy" and "political blows" aimed at him The Court of Cassation confirms this withdrawal, which took place on January 6, and which it should take note of in a decision rendered on January 20

In the so-called "slap" case, Wilfried Schwartz would therefore remain, if his appeal in cassation were indeed canceled, on his conviction on appeal in September 2022: 6 months of ineligibility and a fine of 5,000 euros At the Métropole de Tours, he will be replaced as advisor by Rabia Hadjidj-Bouakkaz

The Court of Cassation confirms this withdrawal, which took place on January 6, and which it should take note of in a decision rendered on January 20 In the so-called "slap" case, Wilfried Schwartz would therefore remain, if his appeal in cassation were indeed canceled, on his conviction on appeal in September 2022: 6 months of ineligibility and a fine of 5,000 euros

At the Métropole de Tours, he will be replaced as advisor by rabia hadjidj-bouakkaz The Court of Cassation confirms this withdrawal, which took place on January 6, and which it should take note of in a decision rendered on January 20

In the so-called "slap" case, Wilfried Schwartz would therefore remain, if his appeal in cassation were indeed canceled, on his conviction on appeal in September 2022: 6 months of ineligibility and a fine of 5,000 euros At the Métropole de Tours, he will be replaced as advisor by Rabia Hadjidj-Bouakkaz

The former mayor of La Riche and president of the metropolis of Tours, Wilfried Schwartz is in the crosshairs for his excessive management exercised in the communities The conviction of the former elected official on appeal for a slap addressed to his former chief of staff at the Metropolis would only be the tip of the iceberg Fifty-seven, they are fifty-seven to have left La Riche since 2019 out of the 217 agents who work daily in this town in the agglomeration of Tours, in Indre-et-Loire The drain of brains and good souls has become an incessant refrain in this city of 10,000 inhabitants This number was even increased to sixty in December 2022 with the departure of three new agents; decided to leave the community permanently: the director general of services, the assistant director of technical services and the person in charge of green spaces According to a dozen exclusive testimonies obtained by France 3 Centre-Val de Loire, the "authoritarian and sometimes violent management" of the former mayor and president of the metropolis of Tours, Wilfried Schwartz, would be at the origin of these cascading departures Proven employees Some agents no longer supported the methods of this young elected official with a dazzling career and his team In the Pays de la Loire, in other communities in Indre-et-Loire, in the south of France, they have fled as far as possible to no longer have to undergo this management which they consider "toxic" This is the case of an ex-agent contacted by telephone: “I was put in the closet little by little, it started in 2016 My missions have been deleted one after the other On an organizational chart, everyone was there except me I was arrested for 6 months…I had a psychological block, I thought about suicide but luckily I was well balanced in my relationship " Fortunately there was solidarity between the agents but they always thought that there would be a drama, a misfortune, a suicide, one day" A former anonymous administrative framework Even his bell on the side of this former administrative framework: "Several agents underwent changes of office, withdrawals of delegations and directions of service, overnight, without there being an interview prior " The testimonies paint the portrait of a man whose behavior would capsize in a second “There is a kind of transformation in a flash: 'You're pissing me off, get out!