ATIS, and correct me if I'm wrong, was supposed to relieve r/t congestion by saving the ATCO the need to relay a/d essential information, which included runway in use, wind etc. therefore the application of variation to wind was implicit, as it is when given on approach by the twr. Yep methinks it should be degrees mag. Not to bad if it's in the UK but try missing 20 odd deg VAR or so when operating out of BIKF on a windy day.