2.3.13. PERSONNEL OF PENITENTIARY ESTABLISHMENTS The monitoring results showed that penitentiary establishments are understaffed. Due to the insufficient number of human resources, the personnel are forced to work in a busy schedule. Overtimes are neither registered nor remunerated in penitentiary establishments. Due to the existing situation, the majority of the penitentiary establishments’ employees have to request and use only half of their vacations.125 The rest of the vacations are not transferred into the next year or reimbursed. Though the Public Defender requested, in the 2017 parliamentary report, for conducting a training session on professional burnout for each employee of penitentiary establishments, this recommendation has not been fulfilled to this day. Penitentiary establishments nos. 3, 14, 15 and 19 are situated away from populated areas. Therefore, the personnel of these penitentiary establishments have to use private or municipal transportation at their own expenses. This creates certain problems for them. In this regard, the practice of penitentiary establishments nos. 5, 6, 16 and 17 is to be mentioned positively as, since 2018, the personnel of these penitentiary establishments have transportation arranged for their commuting. The Public Defender made a recommendation concerning this issue also in the 2017 parliamentary report. Unfortunately, it has not been fulfilled fully and establishments nos. 3, 14, 15 and 19 remain problematic in this regard. Medical insurance is one of the most significant forms of social security. A recommendation concerning the medical insurance of employees of the penitentiary establishments was made in the previous year’s parliamentary report too. It should be positively noted that the personnel of penitentiary establishments were given medical insurance. Employees of penitentiary establishments stay at work for long durations.126 Therefore, it is important to provide them with appropriate food during working hours in order to maintain their health and productivity. For years, employees of penitentiary establishments have had to eat dry food brought from home. It should be positively mentioned that this problem has been eradicated since 2019. Namely, on-duty personnel in penitentiary establishments are provided with food from establishments’ canteen facilities. 125 Under Article 21.1 of the Labour Code, “an employee shall have the right to use paid holiday for minimum 24 working days annually.” 126 Most of the staff members have to work in a 24-hour shift. 44