Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2009/05/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Well, a few facts about the EU agency where I work: - the volume of business (i.e. the number of Community Trade Marks registered per year) has doubled in the past 5-6 years - the speed (the time from application to registration) has been greatly reduced during the same period - the number of staff has remained constant - our agency started operations in April 1996. Aside from 1996 and 1997, when the agency was in its startup phase and needed a subsidy from Brussels, it has made a profit every year since then. In 2008 it was 60 million Euro (on a turnover of approximately 200 million Euro). The surplus does not go into the general EU budget, it just accumulates here. What to do with that pile of cash is one of our big problems (wasting it by hiring more people or investing in grand projects is not an option that our management is willing to entertain, and rightly so). - to prevent/reduce future surplusses, we have cut the fees we charge to register a trademark by more than 40%, effective 1 May 2009. See more here: http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/index.en.do So yes, some of us civil servants do actually work. But work is admittedly more pleasant when you have a cafeteria on the shores of the Mediterranean :-) Cheers, Nathan Nathan Wajsman Alicante, Spain http://www.frozenlight.eu http://www.greatpix.eu http://www.nathanfoto.com Books: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/search?search=wajsman&x=0&y=0 PICTURE OF THE WEEK: http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws Blog: http://www.fotocycle.dk/blog On May 13, 2009, at 12:37 AM, bruce golding wrote: > he's a civil servant now! > > you know how that works .......... > > b. > > On 12-mei-2009, at 0:42, Tina Manley wrote: > >> At 03:52 PM 5/11/2009, you wrote: >>> GNathan Wajsman wrote: >>>> ...in other words, one of my mixed weeks. But all the elements >>>> mentioned in the subject line are there: >>>> http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws/?page_id=238 >>>> As always, comments and critique are welcome and appreciated. >>>> Nathan >> >> The cafeteria at your office is my favorite. How does anybody ever >> get any work done!! >> >> Tina >> >> Tina Manley >> www.tinamanley.com >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Leica Users Group. >> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information