I feel invincible now that I’ve had two life tenures. That should be enough for my planned life so far.
What did I have to sacrifice for it? Nothing at all. But on the way to invincibility, I realized what the administration was willing to sacrifice: trust and efficiency. In order to understand this better, I have to go back a bit.
In order to become a civil servant, it is necessary to be examined by the public health officer in order to obtain a prognosis as to whether potential civil servants will be able to perform their duties on a permanent basis. Personally, I think it makes sense to minimize the risk for the state, which also pays for health benefits.
Teachers at the Berlin universities of applied sciences, the older ones still know them as universities of applied sciences, must also have practical professional training. It was the same in my case. I worked at the State Library, which is part of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation based in Berlin and appoints federal officials.
Probably to avoid duplicate structures, the federal government does not have a public health officer in Berlin but relies on the services of the state authority Lageso (State Office for Health and Social Affairs), which determined in November 2019 that I was healthy enough to become a federal civil servant for life.
In 2020 it became apparent that I should get the chance to become a professor. For an appointment in the state of Berlin, it is also necessary to be checked for suitability by a medical officer. This was also planned for me almost six months later.
David Zellhofer is a professor for digital innovation in public administration at the University of Law and Economics (HWR) in Lichtenberg.
Think for a minute who could examine me?
That’s right, of course the Lageso, where I was warmly welcomed again and we were able to put our conversation about the birth of my second daughter on record as “meanwhile taken place”. My forecast remained the same, there are no different assessment standards between the federal and state governments, as my inquiry revealed – so there could not have been any other result.
Apparently, Berlin does not trust the state’s own Lageso when it comes to the state’s own staff, so that even with “robbery appointments” that are another topic in their own right, the same Lageso has to make a new prognosis regarding the ability to work.
It is hardly surprising that the efficiency of the administrative act suffers from the constructed lack of trust and the lack of process criticism.
It becomes interesting now when teachers who have recently completed their recruitment examination as employees are made civil servants. It’s not as if the medical officers hadn’t already warned about the increased workload.
