Beamter

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The German word Beamter (female: Beamtin, plural: Beamte) means civil servant, and is pronounced be-AHM-tuhr with a glottal stop between the E and A. This English translation may be ambiguous, as German law puts public employees into two classes, namely ordinary employees (Angestellte) and Beamter.

The original idea was that whoever represents the state by doing official duties (hoheitliche Aufgaben) such as issuing official documents, making official decisions, and so on, should have a special kind of employment with the state.

Today, such functions are often executed by non-Beamte, and hence the difference is primarily seen in the advantages such as a good salary, a special health plan (the Beihilfe, which takes over one half of many of the expenses, while the Beamten have to insure themselves against the other half or, like any other employee, have to pay for all of the expenses for certain treatment excluded from refunding), an index-linked pension of max. 71.5 % of the last salary paid directly by the state instead of the usual public (also state-run) pension insurance, and most importantly, the virtual impossibility of losing one's job (basically, the state may only terminate the employment in case of very serious misdemeanor).

The special employment of a Beamter is not being set up by signing a contract, but by a diploma of appointment handed over to the candidate, who has, in return, to take an oath on the constitution (Grundgesetz).

The status of Beamter is enjoyed by the staff of public authorities and civil services, but also by policemen, soldiers and officers, teachers (not all of them) and like professionals, and by holders of political offices such as mayors, ministers, etc. (here, the employment is not permanent of course, but limited until the next election). A notable disadvantage or compensation is that Beamte, unlike all other public or private employees, lack the right to strike. Furthermore, the salary and working week are defined by law and not by negotiations between employers and unions. As a result, the usual working week for public employees is 38.5 hours, for Beamte 40 to 42 hours. In 2004, Holiday pay has been cut to zero and Christmas bonus by 40 %.

Formerly, this status was more liberally bestowed, and as it cannot be taken away there are still a lot of Beamte among the older people working at post offices, the railway, the Deutsche Telekom, the public utility companies, etc. The staff of an average local authority in Germany is split into one third, who are Beamte and two thirds, who are ordinary employees. The police are virtually 100 % Beamte.

Today, the state aims to reduce the eligibility of state employees for Beamter status due to the higher costs of the additional privileges.

All Beamte are paid according to the Bundesbesoldungsgesetz (Federal Salary Bill), be they employed at the office of a village or at the ministry.

A very well-known example for Beamte are German teachers who, due to their special position, have the highest teaching salaries in the Western world: The teachers' salaries always depend on the country they are working for: US-teachers are quite badly-paid, at least primary school teachers with an average of 20 000 %. Britain and a lot of other Commonwealth States pay their teachers a bit better (approx. 30 000 $). However, the countries where teachers get the most are Germany, Switzerland and South Corea. South Corea Salaries go from 25 000 $ up to 60 000 $ (mind: GDP/person: 12 000 $!). Corean teachers are supposed to be the best-paid ones in the world with regard to the Real Income. Switzerland Salaries go from 65 000 $ up to 80 000 $ (mind: GDP/person: 50 000 $!) Germany German teachers are usually "Beamte". The term "Beamtentum" (~officialdom) is quite well-known even in the English-speaking world. In Germany, state employees are permanent workers, i.e. they can never be dismissed, are paid all the necessary social insurances and usually get more money than others. Teachers are Beamte of the Länder. There are 3 different types of secondary schools: a) Hauptschule - teachers are, as Beamte, paid according to the BBesO (Bundesbesoldungsordnung); Hauptschul-teachers start with A 12 and usually "climb" one step. b) Realschule - same as Hauptschule c) Gymnasium - Gymnasien (not English gymnasium, but rather lyceum) prepare the students for the Abitur, after which they can go to university. Gymnasium-teachers are the best paid. They usually have a degree called "Staatsexamen", which can be compared to a MA in two subjects (e.g. Maths and Biology). After the First Staatsexamen, the trainee teachers have to do some practical training for two years, which they are going to finish with their Second Staatsexamen. Then, they are "Beamte zur Anstellung", i.e. they are not permanently employed yet. Until their real Verbeamtung, they have to wait another three years. Then, they become Beamte. Gymnasium-teachers are not called Lehrer in Germany. The first step (A 13, BBesO) is Studienrat (abbrev.: StR) or Studienrätin (StR'). The second step (A 14, BBesO) is Oberstudienrat (OStR) or Oberstudienrätin (OStR') The third step (A 15, BBesO) is Studiendirektor (StD) or Studiendirektorin (StD') The fourth and last step (A 16, BBesO) is Oberstudiendirektor (OStD) or Oberstudiendirektorin (OStD'), i.e. headmaster or -mistress. Higher posts are at the ministry, where the Beamte are paid according to Salary Class B ( also BBesO). [A translation for Oberstudienrat would be: Higher/Superior Educational Council (Council for Studies); all officials of the Higher Service have these titles, e.g. Verwaltungsrat (Administrative Council, Kriminalrat, ...) Salary: example Oberstudienrat, married, three children, has been teaching for 20 years. A 14 family benefit Step 10 Basic salary (A 14, Stufe 10): 4020,61 € family benefit 1138,56 € wife child 1 child 2 child 3 Studienzuschlag 184,53 € Pauschale 245,91 € --> 5589,61 € per month Mind: German officials get 13.5 salaries each year (winter: 1vH; summer: 0,5vH). Therefore, our OStR gets c. 76 000 € (~100 000 USD ;~56 000 GBP). After taxes*: 60 000 € --> 5 000 € per month · Compared to other employees, civil servants only have to pay taxes and parof their health insurance. The other benefits are paid by the state. "Normal" employees, workers etc. also have to pay money for the retirement office, the full health insurance, out-of-work insurance schemes etc.

Titles

Lower service (rare) A2: Oberamtshilfe A3: Hauptamtshilfe A4: Amtsmeister A5: Oberamtsmeister

Middle Service: A5: Assistent A6: Sekretär A7: Meister A8: Obermeister A9: Hauptmeister

Upper service A9: Inspektor A10: Oberinspektor A11: Amtsmann, Amtfrau A12: Amtsrat A13: Oberamtsrat

Upper service at the police A9: Kommissar A10: Oberkommissar A11: Hauptkommissar A11 A12: Hauptkommissar A12 A13: Erster Hauptkommissar

Higher Service A13: Rat, e.g.: Studienrat, medizinalrat, Baurat, Bibliotheksrat, Verwaltungsrat, Regierungsrat A14: Oberrat, e.g. Akademischer Oberrat, Chemieoberrat, Biologieoberrat, Oberregierungsrat A15: Direktor, e.g. Polizeidirektor, Kriminaldirektor, Psychologiedirektor, Pharmaziedirektor A16: Leitender Direktor, e.g. Oberstadtdirektor, Leitender Finanzdirektor, Leitender Medizinaldirektor

B1: Direktor B2: Ministerialrat B3: Botschafter B4: Leitender Ministerialrat B5: Ministerialdirigent B6: Botschafter Erster Klasse B7: Präsident größerer Bundesämter B8: Regierungspräsident B9: Ministerialdirektor B10: Direktor des Deutschen Bundestages B11: Staatssekretär

Bundesminister: 1 1/3 x B11 (federal ministers) Bundeskanzler: 1 2/3 x B11 (federal chancellor)

W1: Juniorprofessor W2: Professor W3: Seniorprofessor

C1: Wissenschaftlicher Assistent C2: Wissenschaftlicher Oberassistent C3: Professor (Extraordinarius) C4: Professor (Ordinarius; Lehrstuhlinhaber)

R1: Amtsrichter, Staatsanwalt R2: Oberamtsrichter, Oberstaatsanwalt R3: Leitender Oberstaatsanwalt R3 R4: Leitender Oberstaatsanwalt R4 R5: Generalstaatsanwalt R6: Bundesanwalt R7: Abteilungsleiter bei der Bundesanwaltschaft R8: Vorsitzender Richter R9: Generalbundesanwalt R10: Hoher Bundesgerichtspräsident

Changing process

The German government have tried to reform the Beamtentum for quite a long time. The salary class C has already been replaced by class W, and until 2011, the salary classes A and B will have been replaced by a new class F (for funtion; Funktion). For this salary class, there will not be any family benefits anymore. Instead, there will be different benefits for good work, so that for good Beamte, the salaries are going to increase, whereas for the others, there will be less money left in the end.

Old > New A F B " C W R R (stays)

A2 F1 A3 F2 ... A13 F14 ... A16 F15 B1 B2 F16 B3 F17 B4 F18 ... B10 F24 B11 F25

The Bundesbesoldungsgesetz

There are several different Besoldungsordnungen: A (for most of the Beamte and soldiers), B(for ministry officials), C(for university professors; has been replaced by W),R (for public prosecuters and all judges) and W for university lecturers and professors. The salaries in the A-order are organized in steps, i.e. the longer a Beamter has been working, the better he or she is paid. The different groups reach from A2 to A 16 (A1 was outlawed in the 1970's). A2 to A5 belong to the Lower Service, A 5 to A 9 to the Middle Service, A 9 to A 13 to the Upper Service and A 13 to A 16 to the Higher Service. The other orders, B, C, R and W, also belong to the Higher Service. To be made a Beamter of the Upper Service, all applicants need their Abitur (comparable to British A-levels) and then study at a college owned by the different offices and institutions. Applicants for the Higher Service need an MA or a comparable university degree.

The Bundesbesoldungsgesetz can be viewed at:

http://www.bmi.bund.de/cln_012/nn_122688/Internet/Content/Themen/Oeffentlicher__Dienst/Einzelseiten/Besoldung/BesoldungstabellenId__94650__de.html

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