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who pays for world bank employee benefits?
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Anonymous
| Is it the US taxpayers? Who pays for the private school tuitions (I know not everyone is eligible for this benefit, but still it's not like it's to pay only for French school, it's for any school), incredibly generous vacation and other time off, plane trips back home, and similiar benefits? Why has no one stopped to say this is outrageous??? |
Anonymous
|
They are not U.S. Government employees.
Go to the WB website. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTSTAFFMANUAL/Resources/StaffManual_WB_web.pdf |
Anonymous
| Are you aware that the World Bank is an international organization and not a U.S. agency? |
Anonymous
| The World Bank's income is funded through its lending activities. It is an international organisation and therefore has to provide benefits sufficient to attract the best economists and other professionals from around the world. It isn't financed by the US taxpayer, though the US does provide a (relatively small) proportion of the grant and highly concessional loans the World Bank provides to its poorest members. |
jsteele
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The World Bank is supported by contributions from member countries and the US is the largest donor. Strictly speaking, the contributions are used to make loans and interest on the loans pays for operating costs. But, indirectly, US taxpayers are contributing funds that allow Bank employees to enjoy nice benefits packages. I do not begrudge the employees their benefits -- I only wish we all could get them. I could easily do with a couple of first class air tickets each year 
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Anonymous
| I do begrudge them--the benefits are far out of line with what they have to pay to attract qualified employees and stand in stark contrast to the policies that the Bank (and more so the Fund) impose on borrower nations. The Bank has recognized this to some extent by cutting back on benefits like the tuition allowance, but not the Fund (sponsor of what has to be the richest defined-benefit pension system in the world). |
Anonymous
| Well, since we are paying bank employees' bonuses.... |
Anonymous
| jsteele - check your facts. its not first class necessarily (depends on lenght of trip, just like any private sector travel policy) and its not every year. And...are you willing to leave your country, culture, language, extended family and friends, and relocate to a far away place which - lets face it - is not necessarily friendly to foreigners... in order to work for your employer? |
Anonymous
Do you know what the job market is like outside the US? In Latin America for example? People are willing to do all those things you just mentioned just to have a decent paying job. The benefits are NOT necessary. |
Anonymous
|
No one is being forced to work in unfriendly Washington DC. Some might even consider moving to the US for a year or a few years exciting and rewarding in and of itself. Local hires and international hires alike get what seems to me extraordinary benefits. What is so special about these employees that they should be allowed to bring over household help? Why are their children so special that they should be given generous allowances to go to any private school they want to (vs. only to a school that teaches in their native language)? Why 8 weeks of paid leave each year?
In this economy, some should be grateful to have a job at all with or without 8 weeks of vacation. |
Anonymous
|
Nowadays, when an employer brings a family from overseas, the costs to the family can be great. Often the displacement can cause marital strain and children suffer. There are other opportunity costs like loss of spouse's job that can really hurt.
To minimize stress, the family has to be kept in contact with their home country, hence, they are offered home leave. The same goes for many diplomatic families. In the old days, the spouses and children were not allowed to work in the US, which stagnated their lives. It is not all rosy I am a child of a World Bank employee, and I can not say that our standard of living was better as a result of the move to the US. My mother was a doctor, but had to give up her career when she came here at 45, too old to re-train or complete exams again, she as also not allowed to work. After 20 years here, my parents divorced. I believe that much of the stress came from the job. You have to keep in mind that many WB/IMF employees are not immigrants, they are often here just for the job. The intention for many is to return home, with their families intact. They want the private school benefits because they are highly educated people who want good educations for their kids, and US schools reputations are scary. Whether or not you agree that our schools are not the best, they at least want schools that have a system similar to their home countries'. Any less in terms of benefits would have sent my father back home. The standards have to be as high as the wealthiest Western European countries, or it is unlikely that those individuals would come here. So the bennies might look good to someone coming from a less affluent country, and even to many Americans, but that is a matter of perspective. I met and marred an American after living overseas, the life here is easier than for my mother because I practically grew up here. |
Anonymous
The most notorious benefits are not available to U.S. citizens. |
Anonymous
pp here. Most of the hired help is what these families are used to at home. They want people in their homes that understand their culture, food and so on. The any private school thing is complicated, it is not just that language thing. The culture of many US public schools is off putting to many foreigners. Many of these people live slightly more formal lives back home, and a scared to death of their children ending up like American teens. That is NOT to say that there are no hooligan kids in Japan, but these are some concerns. |
Anonymous
| Has the number or quality of foreign applicants for World Bank jobs declined since the tuition benefit was eliminated? That would be interesting to know. |
Anonymous
Good that you ask, if you try to recruit a GOOD economist from say Norway, you are looking at a country with a per capita income well over 80K per year. They don't want to hire just anyone. Many are so special that they can find very good jobs at home, even in this economy. Let me remind you that well over 95% of college educated people in the US that want jobs, have them. Well educated people have good jobs, even now. That Norwegian economist with a home salary of say 200K, can come to the US on vacation when he wants...hint. |