Monday, January 27, 2014

Germany's subversive civil servants

Bear with us for a minute of history of Germany's civil service.

Unlike many other countries, Germany's civil service has a class of folks who are more special than other civil servants. If you think American teachers are hard to fire, you won't believe what Germany's "Beamte" can do and not do.

When Germany last crashed big time, you know, after the guy with the mustache, West Germany created a new civil service. They took some of the American model (the GS thing) and sort of fused it with the old feudal system of the defunct Kaiser and mini fiefdoms.

You get in at 18 and you never leave is a simplified but still largely applicable condensed version. You don't get unionized but you benefit from what the unions of the "regular" civil servants negotiate.

Organizational changes have eroded some of the numbers, for instance, when the railroads were privatized. But the core functions are firmly in the hands of Beamte.

Known for their rigor and their unwavering support of the state, we were a bit surprised to hear anecdotes of civil servants risking a promotion or two in favor of compassion and empathy.

The two examples that follow do not have names or locations attached, and we won't give details on when they took place. Suffice it to say we were not involved and we greatly respect the officials who did what they did.

A resident alien in Germany noticed the permit in the passport had expired a week ago. The alien went to city hall to apply for an extension, apologized for being a week late and asked if there was a way to expedite the process. If you go over to the county seat, the renewal will be done in a week or so, if you leave the papers here, it'll take six weeks. So, off to county it was, papers filed, done.
A letter arrives after a week, announcing the alien is subject to an investigation for failure to renew the permit on time. And expect a steep fine, the letter said.
Another week later, a letter arrives with the verdict. The paper is marked "copy for alien". No fine but the original of the decision will be put into the alien's file, which will automatically trigger a fine if the next renewal deadline is missed.
There is a second sheet of paper in the envelope. This one is marked in bright red "Original decision - official file".  Not an error, at least not in Germany.

A German worker in his mid-50s, chronically ill, dependent on the wacky social benefits system they call Hartz-IV. His doctors recommend he retires.
The man gets stuck in the administrative black hole between the health insurer, the pensions agency and the job center.
Very much like American vets in the VA system.
His meager savings gone, he goes from family member to family member, lucky he has family, and they feed him.
You are too sick to work! You are too healthy to retire! Your basic living allowance is already cut by 30%, we will maintain those cuts until you make an honest effort to look for work!
This goes on for the better part of a year when he is at his next appointment at the job center.
The official, a Beamter, re-shuffles the stack of files once again, then pauses and says: "Look, this has gone on for far too long. I myself will retire in three months, and I have had it. I am getting you out of this madness."
The official kept his word.



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