Dear BIS parents,
As stated on Director Sorenson’s blog, BIS staff have rejected management’s fourth offer on salary and are preparing for industrial action on Wednesday the 10th of September. We have been in negotiations since last year, first with the Betriebsrat (Works Council- a council of elected teachers and staff) and later with Ver.di (our trade union). The most recent rejection of management’s offer comes after three Ver.di proposals and four management proposals, three general members’ meetings, and hundreds of hours of preparation and discussion. It does not come as an easy decision.
Historically, BIS has not adjusted wages for inflation, leading to wage stagnation and de facto wage decrease against increased cost of living. This can be seen when one compares past wages with current wages, or BIS vs. MIS salaries (see tables below). In salary, BIS has fallen behind other schools in the area, despite growing enrolment & expansion. Looking back to our last Works Agreement (2011), staff have not received any salary adjustment in three years. We still receive the same salary as in 2011, but must pay 2014 prices for rent, transportation, and food. The Board and Directorate of BIS have raised tuition fees each year between 2.5%-3.5%. Yet at the same time, staff have received no change to their salaries.
The main tenets of our demands are for:
In management’s fourth proposal, we finally saw some of our arguments recognised, and we applaud Dr. Sorenson for her work. However, membership voted the fourth proposal down. Membership felt that it was an excellent first step, but should not be one of the last offers from management. Last year’s management moved very slowly in their negotiations with the BR, and when Ver.di took over negotiations in April, staff were told the budget had been set for year 2014-2015 and therefore were limited in what they could offer. Management has had three years to prepare for current salary negotiations, yet their previous offers demonstrate that there was never the intention to meaningfully adjust salaries. If, as Dr. Sorenson wrote to staff, the 3.5% increase in tuition fees this year was to go to staff salary, why was it not offered at the commencement of negotiations?
Critically, there were significant issues in the fourth proposal:
We feel that BIS is an excellent school, with outstanding results. We have beautiful facilities, excellent access to modern technologies and an incredibly dedicated staff. In order to attract and retain a greater number of the outstanding staff that arrive at BIS and strengthen our educational program further, we believe more significant salary increases are crucial, especially when considering the high living costs of a city such as Munich. We wish to see an offer from management that recognises and values our labor, just as management values growing enrolment, new gymnasiums and a second campus. The quality of teaching is the most influential factor in improving student outcomes. Educators and the individuals integral in supporting the education process are the most important assets a school possesses.
We ask that you do not send your child to school on Wednesday the 10th of September. Based on numbers of union members, we cannot verify that there will be staff in school to care for your child. We also request that out of respect for your child’s teachers, to support us by keeping your child at home. Lastly, please urge the Board and the Directorate to invest in our staff.
If you have questions, you may write to [email protected]. If you wish to support BIS staff, we welcome words of solidarity. In closing, we share with parents our mission statement, which shapes the direction of our work at BIS. We hope to work with parents as allies, in moving towards a school that is a caring and committed international community.
Please download the following for further clarification:
Graphs and Tables
Ver.di at BIS
Our principles
Our belief:
Is that all employees at BIS should experience fair and just working conditions with a healthy work-life balance and feel valued for their contributions to our community.
Our purpose:
Is to provide a forum and channel for staff to determine improvements in working conditions at BIS. Our working conditions are our students’ learning conditions. We are committed to advancing these principles through collective bargaining and the work of our members.
Our goal:
Is to help BIS become a centre of excellence for teaching and learning through the promotion of global-mindedness and trust. We encourage humility to learn and a willingness to work together. We strive for a transparent and respectful school culture, demonstrated through consistency in word and action. We strive for a socially responsible and reflective school, built on collaboration and honesty.
Our success:
Will be determined by the creation of a caring, ethical, and professional work environment which nurtures and supports the BIS community.
In Solidarity,
Ver.di @ BIS Tariff Kommission
As stated on Director Sorenson’s blog, BIS staff have rejected management’s fourth offer on salary and are preparing for industrial action on Wednesday the 10th of September. We have been in negotiations since last year, first with the Betriebsrat (Works Council- a council of elected teachers and staff) and later with Ver.di (our trade union). The most recent rejection of management’s offer comes after three Ver.di proposals and four management proposals, three general members’ meetings, and hundreds of hours of preparation and discussion. It does not come as an easy decision.
Historically, BIS has not adjusted wages for inflation, leading to wage stagnation and de facto wage decrease against increased cost of living. This can be seen when one compares past wages with current wages, or BIS vs. MIS salaries (see tables below). In salary, BIS has fallen behind other schools in the area, despite growing enrolment & expansion. Looking back to our last Works Agreement (2011), staff have not received any salary adjustment in three years. We still receive the same salary as in 2011, but must pay 2014 prices for rent, transportation, and food. The Board and Directorate of BIS have raised tuition fees each year between 2.5%-3.5%. Yet at the same time, staff have received no change to their salaries.
The main tenets of our demands are for:
- BIS adjust salaries to cover inflation over the past three years (for 2014-2015, 5.1% for inflation, plus an actual increase)
- BIS take strides to move salaries towards like-schools in the area (for 2015-2016, not just inflation, but an actual increase)
- The understanding that step change (moving up a salary step to recognise experience) is not a salary increase, as previously argued by last year’s management
In management’s fourth proposal, we finally saw some of our arguments recognised, and we applaud Dr. Sorenson for her work. However, membership voted the fourth proposal down. Membership felt that it was an excellent first step, but should not be one of the last offers from management. Last year’s management moved very slowly in their negotiations with the BR, and when Ver.di took over negotiations in April, staff were told the budget had been set for year 2014-2015 and therefore were limited in what they could offer. Management has had three years to prepare for current salary negotiations, yet their previous offers demonstrate that there was never the intention to meaningfully adjust salaries. If, as Dr. Sorenson wrote to staff, the 3.5% increase in tuition fees this year was to go to staff salary, why was it not offered at the commencement of negotiations?
Critically, there were significant issues in the fourth proposal:
- Not all staff members received an adjustment of 5.1% to cover inflation. The base levels for non-teaching staff in the fourth proposal were not adjusted by 5.1%, meaning that over the next three years, non-teaching staff on lower steps would not receive a salary adequately adjusted for inflation from 2011. This has been historically been a significant problem with wages at BIS, leading to de facto wage decreases. We cannot accept an offer that awards a new salary that does not meet inflation.
- For the second year of the salary agreement (2015-2016), management’s proposal was 2%. When taking projected inflation into account, this amounts to only a 0.8% increase. We believe that moving forwards there must be further progress made with staff salaries, beyond simply re-cooping 2011 levels of buying power.
- Management made a Year Three (2016-2017) proposal again of 2%. Again, this is too low, after inflation has been taken into account. In addition, three year contracts have not been beneficial for staff historically, which is why Ver.di’s most recent proposal requested a two-year contract.
We feel that BIS is an excellent school, with outstanding results. We have beautiful facilities, excellent access to modern technologies and an incredibly dedicated staff. In order to attract and retain a greater number of the outstanding staff that arrive at BIS and strengthen our educational program further, we believe more significant salary increases are crucial, especially when considering the high living costs of a city such as Munich. We wish to see an offer from management that recognises and values our labor, just as management values growing enrolment, new gymnasiums and a second campus. The quality of teaching is the most influential factor in improving student outcomes. Educators and the individuals integral in supporting the education process are the most important assets a school possesses.
We ask that you do not send your child to school on Wednesday the 10th of September. Based on numbers of union members, we cannot verify that there will be staff in school to care for your child. We also request that out of respect for your child’s teachers, to support us by keeping your child at home. Lastly, please urge the Board and the Directorate to invest in our staff.
If you have questions, you may write to [email protected]. If you wish to support BIS staff, we welcome words of solidarity. In closing, we share with parents our mission statement, which shapes the direction of our work at BIS. We hope to work with parents as allies, in moving towards a school that is a caring and committed international community.
Please download the following for further clarification:
Graphs and Tables
Ver.di at BIS
Our principles
Our belief:
Is that all employees at BIS should experience fair and just working conditions with a healthy work-life balance and feel valued for their contributions to our community.
Our purpose:
Is to provide a forum and channel for staff to determine improvements in working conditions at BIS. Our working conditions are our students’ learning conditions. We are committed to advancing these principles through collective bargaining and the work of our members.
Our goal:
Is to help BIS become a centre of excellence for teaching and learning through the promotion of global-mindedness and trust. We encourage humility to learn and a willingness to work together. We strive for a transparent and respectful school culture, demonstrated through consistency in word and action. We strive for a socially responsible and reflective school, built on collaboration and honesty.
Our success:
Will be determined by the creation of a caring, ethical, and professional work environment which nurtures and supports the BIS community.
In Solidarity,
Ver.di @ BIS Tariff Kommission