Pay
Since 2011, the Alfred Wegener Institute has functioned according to the Collective Agreement for the Public Service of the Federation (TVöD Bund), which will usually also apply to your employment contract. Some exceptions apply, such as student assistants or interns – but if you come as a graduate student, postdoc or senior scientist to us or as an employee in management, technology or infrastructure, then your employment and, therefore, also your salary will normally be according to the TVöD Bund.
This means that the charging system of the federation from which your salary is derived will then apply to you. This is broken down into different occupational groups and determines the allocation to individual salary groups according to certain factors, which may vary from one profession to another – this often depends on the breadth and depth of certain skills which are necessary for the tasks to be performed, the difficulty of the activity, or the responsibility and/or importance that is involved.
What is important for you: Your salary is not open to negotiation; it instead results from your tasks (which determine the salary group) and your professional experience – within each salary group, there are six levels that reward increasing job experience with increasing pay.
For apprentices, the current remuneration in accordance with the Collective Agreement for Apprentices in the Public Sector (TVAöD) applies.
Remuneration Table – Collective Agreement for the Public Sector (Federal Government) (TVöD Bund)
| Pay Grade / Experience Level | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| E 15Ü | 7 062.92 | 7 814.11 | 8 525.72 | 9 000.15 | 9 110.86 | |
| E 15 | 5 827.86 | 6 208.96 | 6 634.05 | 7 214.39 | 7 811.37 | 8 204.11 |
| E 14 | 5 298.27 | 5 643.35 | 6 094.01 | 6 594.12 | 7 151.57 | 7 551.78 |
| E 13 | 4 901.11 | 5 279.32 | 5 709.87 | 6 177.31 | 6 727.38 | 7 025.87 |
| E 12 | 4 415.70 | 4 850.91 | 5 359.50 | 5 923.82 | 6 586.00 | 6 900.18 |
| E 11 | 4 269.64 | 4 669.92 | 5 046.03 | 5 454.10 | 6 012.56 | 6 326.77 |
| E 10 | 4 124.53 | 4 438.16 | 4 794.69 | 5 181.37 | 5 611.95 | 5 753.35 |
| E 9c | 3 978.29 | 4 249.97 | 4 589.09 | 4 958.59 | 5 359.19 | 5 487.80 |
| E 9b | 3 833.50 | 3 956.17 | 4 267.03 | 4 608.13 | 4 983.57 | 5 297.75 |
| E 9a | 3 691.52 | 3 917.37 | 3 981.07 | 4 196.35 | 4 590.80 | 4 746.88 |
| E 8 | 3 486.40 | 3 697.29 | 3 843.36 | 3 992.40 | 4 153.50 | 4 230.97 |
| E 7 | 3 294.98 | 3 537.94 | 3 682.69 | 3 828.76 | 3 969.05 | 4 045.24 |
| E 6 | 3 240.30 | 3 440.25 | 3 580.46 | 3 719.22 | 3 855.50 | 3 926.20 |
| E 5 | 3 124.08 | 3 318.04 | 3 449.05 | 3 587.78 | 3 716.70 | 3 783.33 |
| E 4 | 2 994.17 | 3 190.45 | 3 355.14 | 3 457.66 | 3 560.17 | 3 620.20 |
| E 3 | 2 953.13 | 3 164.20 | 3 215.57 | 3 332.99 | 3 421.10 | 3 501.81 |
| E 2Ü | 2 787.52 | 3 028.30 | 3 116.51 | 3 234.12 | 3 314.92 | 3 375.24 |
| E 2 | 2 767.54 | 2 975.32 | 3 027.12 | 3 101.04 | 3 263.52 | 3 433.49 |
| E 1 | 2 543.55 | 2 568.83 | 2 611.69 | 2 651.64 | 2 754.50 |
Table valid from 1 May 2026 to 31 March 2027 (gross monthly amounts in €)
In addition, employees receive an annual special payment amounting to pay grades
- E 1 to E 8: 95%
- E 9a to E 12: 90%
- E 13 to E 15: 75%
of the average gross monthly remuneration.
Further details on the annual special payment can be found in Section 20 of the Collective Agreement for the Public Sector – Federal Government (TVöD Bund) (German only).
Remuneration Table – Collective Agreement for Public Sector Apprentices (TVAöD)
| Year of Apprenticeship | |
| 1st Year | 1 368.26 |
| 2nd Year | 1 418.20 |
| 3rd Year | 1 464.02 |
| 4th Year | 1 527.59 |
Table effective from 1 May 2026 (gross monthly amounts in €)
In addition, apprentices receive an annual special payment amounting to 90% of the average gross monthly remuneration.
Further details on the annual special payment can be found in Section 14 of the Collective Agreement for Public Sector Apprentices (TVAöD BT BBiG)(German only).