#ichbinhanna – German scientists unite on Twitter against precarious academic employment law

The scientific community on Twitter might have noticed that – a couple of weeks ago – tweets containing #ichbinhanna (#Iamhanna) were  trending among German colleagues. Behind this hashtag, scientists from various fields collectively protested against the German Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (academic fixed-term contract act), which depicts the legal basis for employment of academic researchers on fixed-term contracts. While dealing with temporary positions is not uncommon for scientist in most countries, the exceptionality of the German law is that after 12 years of fixed-term contracts funded by public money, scientist cannot be hired on this basis anymore. For scientists who have not found a permanent position after this time period, this will ultimately urge them to end their academic path in Germany.

Although the law has been controversially discussed since its introduction in 2007, the trigger for this vociferous social media campaign was a video clip released by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in early June. In this animated cartoon, a narrator justifies the necessity of the academic fixed-term contract act based on the academic career of the fictional biologist Hanna. Almost sarcastically, the video explains that the law prevents the system from being clogged with scientist and that fluctuation fosters innovation in science. As a reaction to the video, scientists have described their individual experiences on fixed-term contracts in academia. They demand a revision of the law which enables long-term predictability for professional and private life and facilitates family planning (especially for female scientists). In total, 92% of all scientists under 45 work on precarious fixed-term contracts. For people unsuccessfully pursuing their passion until the end of this period, this will mean to reorientate professionally at an age difficult to find new employment.

Additionally, the time restriction has direct implications on the conducted research. Since scientists need to generate successful scientific output within a restricted time frame, they are discouraged tofollow risky, non-mainstream and long-term research projects. The perceived lack of acknowledgement of scientific achievements motivates many scientists to apply for permanent positions outside of Germany. Apart from the time limitation, the German system is in need to reconsider the diversity of offered roles within the academic system, including more job positions in teaching (as e.g. lecturer position, uncommon in Germany) and outreach. While the video has been removed from all official channels by this time, the call for action continues to resonate within the scientific community