Spotlight

On the job

BSH as a modern workplace

Banner consisting of three pictures. The first one shows a digital sea chart, the second one the entrance area of the BSH Rostock and the third one the Fino platform.

As a modern employer, the BSH promotes gender equality, and supports our staff in balancing work, life, family and care responsibilities. Working with mixed-aged teams, our employees use state-of-the-art technology. We understand that commitment and willingness to work is essential for creating and fostering a motivating working atmosphere, and are fully committed to continuous improvement to the benefit of our clients and staff alike.

Our good working atmosphere is our key to success. We value our employees’ team skills and social competence, and follow modern management guidelines to keep them involved. We support our executive personnel and all other employees in shaping their careers by offering various career development measures and are ready to take on the challenges of demographic change, increasing digitisation and internationalisation.

Our offer to you

Job security

BSH is a public service employer. Accordingly our staff benefit from the public service’s job security.

Flexible working hours

Starting work at midday or leaving early today? Within certain guidelines, BSH employees can adapt their working hours to their rhythm of life. We offer flexible part-time work models and a generous flexitime scheme. Coordinate with your colleagues and superiors to adjust your working hours according to your individual needs. If you work longer than your usual hours, your overtime hours are not lost. Our time credit system allows you to take additional hours or days off as you need them.

Regular working hours for full-time public service employees total 39 hours a week. Civil servants normally work 41 hours a week, but can reduce their regular working hours to 40 hours to take on family commitments.

Telecommuting and mobile working

Under certain conditions, we offer you the option of regular telecommuting arrangement, even for our executive level staff. In such case, you will have to provide office space at or near your home and we will provide the equipment. Occasional mobile working at a place of their choice is open to all our staff including executive staff who need to cover short term absences, provided that the technical and business requirements are met. This is currently possible for up to 82 days a year. Based on your individual working time model (teleworking and/or part-time), the possible number of your mobile days will be calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Work and family commitments

If you experience any short term childcare issues, feel free to bring your child to work. For such an occasion, parent’s offices have been set up in our Hamburg and Rostock facilities that include a play area for children.

In case of issues with other family commitments including the care for dependant persons, ElternService AWO GmbH welfare company’s branch Familienservice 2 is ready to establish contact to persons who can assist you and your family.

Family or other reasons keep you from working full-time? BSH offers a variety of part-time work models for almost every post up to the executive level. Under certain conditions, temporary part-time arrangements are also possible. After the agreed period you may return to full-time employment to ensure the compatibility of family and work commitments.

Taking grandparental leave is an option if you want to take care of your grandchildren. The Caregiver Leave Act gives you the opportunity to support close family members at home and balance your work and family commitments. Learn more about the BSH as a family-friendly employer.

Payment transparency

Pay schedules and pay scales are based on objective criteria end ensure there is no gender pay gap for public employees and civil servants.

They are accessible to the public.

Public service employees

  • You receive your monthly pay on the last day of the month.
  • You are entitled to annual extra payment (so-called Christmas allowance).
  • You are entitled to capital accumulation benefits.
  • You may earn performance-related bonuses or allowances for special achievements.

Civil servants

  • You are entitled to capital accumulation benefits.
  • You may earn performance-related bonuses or allowances for special achievements.

Annual and special leave

You are granted more paid leave than the legal minimum. Currently, the annual leave entitlement for public employees and civil servants working five days a week is 30 days, including for our trainees. Staff who are exposed to special workloads and/or conditions, e.g. diving activities, may be granted up to three more days of additional leave. Severely disabled persons benefit from an additional leave of five days per year.

Any unused leave days may be carried forward until 31 December of the following year.

Extensive training opportunities tailored to your needs

Would you like to develop your personal and professional skills? We give you the opportunity to do so. Just get in touch with our personnel development division, who will assist you in finding the best way to achieve your goals. Together with the public service’s educational institutions, the BSH offers a variety of professional development activities. We also cooperate with other partners, and offer educational or special leave.

BSH staff working in the City of Hamburg are entitled to up to ten days of educational leave for advanced vocational training or civic education within a two-year period. In addition, we offer our employees the opportunity to undertake in-service studies subject to our demand for subject-specific skills.

We are interested in supporting your professional development throughout your career. Team-oriented measures or personal coaching are well-established parts of our portfolio, because we consider both expertise and soft skills as valuable assets. Executive staff will undergo different training modules, and are provided continuous support in various forums and courses.

Occupational pension scheme for an adequate pension

Employees join the statutory pension scheme. The benefits paid from the statutory pension scheme are supplemented by the Supplementary Pensions Agency for Public Service Employees (VBL). From the first day of their training or employment, all trainees and employees are automatically registered in this compulsory supplementary pension scheme. Contributions are paid both by the trainee/employee and the employer.

Training and development

Professional and personal development

Staff development matters to us! We continuously improve our staff development programme and will guide you step by step through a variety of measures.

Induction phase

With the systematic induction of new members of staff, we want to ensure that you have an easy start to your career at the BSH. You will be given a welcome folder with all important information on your job even before you arrive. Social integration will begin with a personal welcome by the senior management and a mandatory introductory event. While your superiors will ensure systematic work familiarisation, your colleagues will support you throughout the induction phase.

Individual staff development

As a scientific institution, we encourage our staff to regularly undergo further training and offer access to a wide range of internal and external advanced training programmes. We do not only promote professional development, but also the development of other skills and potentials. Our portfolio includes communication training, self-management and work organisation courses, and work-life balance seminars.

We promote the enhancement of intercultural competence and international skills and try to tailor qualification courses to the individual needs of our staff. Subject to vacancies, we encourage our staff to qualify for promotion to a higher career level. Performance and potentials are identified in regular appraisals to support the overall qualification process.

Systematic development of executive personnel

The systematic training of executive staff is a cornerstone of the BSH staff development programme. Every BSH executive undergoes a modular executive training programme to familiarise them with the specific requirements of their job and enhance their methodical, social and personal skills.

In addition to the basic executive training programme, relevant in-house training courses are offered to uphold and improve the BSH’s leadership standards. These in-house training activities are supplemented by an annual executive staff symposium to promote an active exchange and cooperation at the executive level.

While developing our executive staff is important, we are also always seeking to identify and support future leaders. We therefore encourage the deputies of our executive staff and project managers to participate in training courses to prepare them for an executive function.