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Controversial issue of master duty: "For a single tap no plumber will come anymore"

2019-12-28T07:02:12.194Z


From next year, the master craftsman's duty will again apply to twelve trades. Critics believe that this will exacerbate the skills shortage - supporters are convinced otherwise.



opinion

It affects interior decorators as well as glass refiners, organ builders and wooden toy makers: at the beginning of the coming year they have to prove a master title if they want to start their own business. The Bundestag recently decided that.

In 2004, the requirement to be a master craftsman was no longer applicable in 53 professions. At the time, the federal government wanted to open up easier jobs for the self-employed with the reform of the trade regulations. Until then, these companies were only allowed to be run by trained master craftsmen. Now this regulation is being reversed for twelve trades.

Claudia Drescher / DPA

Master wood turner on a lathe: "The master is the 'security' of the craft"

Experts are currently speculating about the effects of the controversial change - and will come to very different views. Hans Peter Wollseifer, President of the Central Association of German Crafts, says: "The master is the 'security' of the craft." Jonas Kuckuk from the professional association of independent craftsmen, on the other hand, says: "The shortage of skilled workers will worsen."

Recorded by Lisa Duhm

Per


Hans Peter Wollseifer

"France is currently looking all over the country for craftsmen to rebuild Notre Dame. The money for the repairs is there, but there are hardly any people who still master old handicraft techniques. And without them, we can't do it. In Germany, we are giving the championship title for the knowledge to be passed on to the next generation, even in traditional professions, thereby preserving our cultural assets for the future.

Werner Schüring

The main argument for compulsory master craftsmanship is different. We want the work of our artisans to continue to be of high quality. This is only possible if the training is of high quality. That's what the master stands for.

We need new generations of masters who train and ensure that there will still be enough skilled workers with well-founded technical know-how in the future. In the master classes, craftsmen learn everything you need to know to run their own business - including how to train young people in their skills.

This year, the number of trainees in the skilled trades fell for the first time after a slight increase, also because fewer refugees have to be integrated into the labor market. We will only change the number of apprenticeships if we succeed in upgrading the image of the craft and making young people aware of the many career opportunities. Companies are already doing a lot to make training attractive.

Here too, the master's certificate has an important function: because how should I get young people excited about a job if they have to believe that knowledge and skills are not important? How can I explain to them that training for this profession is worth something if everyone can do it without any qualification? The master certificate is the "security" in the craft, which demonstrates quality, successful qualification and masterly skill. We can only solve the shortage of skilled workers if we continue to rely on the master.

Critics often accuse us of only wanting the championship title to keep competition on the market low. The argument doesn't work. It is already possible in a variety of ways to run a business without a master's degree - for example via the so-called "old journeyman's regulation", if you can boast many years of professional experience.

The companies that have been founded since the compulsory master craftsman's work were abolished, by the way, all have inventory protection. So you can continue to work. "

Contraindications

Jonas Kuckuk

"It was clear to me at the age of 14 that I didn't want to do an apprenticeship. I found this hierarchical structure between master, journeyman and apprentice terrible. Today I'm 53 years old and have neither trained nor studied. Nevertheless, I work as a thatched roofer and can live well from it.

Private

My example shows: You don't need a master to be a good craftsman. Whoever demands this duty actually wants to artificially crimp the market. Because only those who have a championship title are allowed to open and train their own business in Germany. I would like to do that too, but despite years of professional experience I am not allowed to do it without the title.

Nothing has changed in the structures of that time. Some masters still like to exercise their power over their employees. But that doesn't fit into the modern world of work. For young people who have many alternative career options today, training is often unattractive. The craft doesn't have to be surprised if it doesn't find any offspring.

The argument that there would be no training without a master craftsman's certificate is therefore also invalid. The number of apprentices in the craft sector has been falling for years. There was no reinforcement of this trend in the professions for which the compulsory master craftsman certificate was abolished in 2004. If you want to change something about the fact that we have fewer and fewer trainees, you have to change something about the working conditions and the image of the craft - and not restrict the freedom of occupation by reintroducing the master craftsman duty.

This decision will only exacerbate the shortage of skilled workers. There is less competition on an artificially small market, which is of course pleasant for the masters and creates security. The costs are borne by the consumer: the prices for handicraft services will rise due to the amendment, the waiting times will be even longer.

And if you only have a small order to place, you'll be left behind: For a single tap, no plumber will come to the customer. "

Source: spiegel

All business articles on 2019-12-28

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