The German University Association has appealed to the federal and state governments to give the universities appropriate consideration in energy cost relief packages.
The universities have already gone to the pain limit with their energy-saving programs.
This applies, for example, to the University of Bochum, which, according to its own statements, will not fill 250 non-scientific positions for six months that will become vacant by the end of May 2023 through retirement or a change of job.
Heike Schmoll
Political correspondent in Berlin, responsible for “Bildungswelten”.
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The university intends to use the seven million euros saved to pay for its high energy costs.
The savings are still limited to the non-scientific area, said the president of the university association, Bernhard Kempen, but no one can rule out that hiring freezes will not soon be imposed in the scientific area as well.
In contrast to Saxony, which wants to take over the rising energy costs in full, and Baden-Württemberg, which has an inflation reserve of one billion euros for the state properties and thus above all for the universities for the next two years, North Rhine-Westphalia has not yet had any concrete help for the universities.
There was talk of an additional 50 million for 2022, which will not bring any significant relief at 37 state universities.
In Bavaria, Hesse and Saarland it is still completely unclear whether there will be state-owned energy aid.
In Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Thuringia, the budgets are even expected to shrink due to additionally imposed global underspending.
The university association called on the federal states to play with open cards and not to further damage educational federalism by hoping exclusively for federal funds but doing nothing themselves.