Do civil servants really have it better than employees?

By Sebastian Geisler

“Salary” instead of salary

Interesting: Unlike employees, civil servants receive their salary, called “sold”, at the beginning of the month – i.e. BEFORE the work has even been performed.

Civil servants usually receive LESS gross money than employees. But: You have fewer deductions.

Because: Those who are civil servants for life are not threatened with unemployment. Therefore there is no unemployment insurance. In addition, civil servants do not pay into the pension fund; they later receive a civil servant’s pension, directly from the state.

One disadvantage for the civil servant, however, is that there are no flexible allowances for special commitment or special expertise, which can be frustrating.

There is also often a lack of skilled workers in authorities because they prefer to work in the private sector. “In the IT sector, for civil engineers or lawyers, the private sector is attractive with significantly higher salaries and career opportunities,” says Dirk Werner, labor market expert at the German Economic Institute (IW) in Cologne.

But there are surcharges for civil servants for marriage and children – there is usually nothing for employees.

retirement

Officials receive a pension. They acquire corresponding entitlements with years of service: For example, anyone who has completed 40 years of service is entitled to 71.75 (!) percent of their last salary. In contrast: retirees only get 48 percent after 45 years of contributions. However, civil servants must continue to pay for their private health insurance and also pay tax on the pension. Financially, however, they are usually much better off than retirees.

Career

Civil servants do not experience a career with ups and downs, their career path and the conditions for promotion are clearly defined. This also means that relegation and unemployment are practically impossible.

Labor market expert Werner: “Employees find it much easier to shape their own career, for example by changing employers or changing within the company,” says labor market expert Werner. “Officials develop over the course of their careers, and the tasks are more regulated by bureaucratic processes and hierarchical instructions.”

Health insurance

Although the civil servant has to pay for his private health insurance himself, he is entitled to what is known as an allowance. The aid office pays at least 50 percent of the costs, and the civil servant insures the rest privately.

The disadvantage: “The civil servant first has to pay the bills himself and then submit them to the private insurance company AND the aid office and wait for reimbursement. Employees with statutory health insurance only swipe their health insurance card and have nothing to do with this bureaucracy,” says expert Werner.

duties

The so-called moderation requirement applies to civil servants. This means that civil servants must refrain from making public statements that are contrary to the dignity of their office. That is often a matter of opinion. Civil servants also have to exercise restraint politically, for example not wearing a party pin when on duty. The transsexual Bundeswehr soldier Anastasia Biefang got into trouble with her employer in the summer of 2022 because she was looking for sexual contacts on the dating app “Tinder”. The case went to court!