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Application form for short-time work benefits: Thousands of suspected cases
Photo: Jens Büttner / DPA
According to the federal government, damage of more than six million euros has been determined this year due to the abuse of short-time work benefits in the corona crisis.
From March up to and including August of this year, the Federal Employment Agency (BA) recorded around 2100 cases that indicated possible abuse of short-time work benefits, according to a response to a request from the FDP in the Bundestag.
"There is currently a specific suspicion of abuse of services in 21 cases," said the Ministry of Social Affairs.
They were handed over to the law enforcement authorities.
So far, a financial loss of around 6.3 million euros has become known.
The BA has had a systematic record of cases of abuse since March.
More than 6000 people nationwide are employed in processing and reviewing suspected cases of short-time allowance.
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The social policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group, Pascal Kober, said: "The quick payout and the subsequent increase in staff to avoid abuse were the right decision at the beginning of the crisis."
Now the employees who have been brought together from different areas of activity and departments must be trained sustainably in order to detect and prevent abuse.
"Because it is already becoming apparent that the financial damage caused by the abuse of short-time allowance is considerable."
The Federal Cabinet decided a week ago that Germany's companies will be able to send their employees to short-time work more easily due to the Corona crisis.
The reference period for short-time work allowance has been extended to up to 24 months, up to the end of 2021 at the latest. The extension is to apply to all companies with the start of short-time work by the end of 2020.
Since the beginning of the year, the crisis depressed the income of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) by more than 1.2 billion euros in comparison with the previous year until August - expenditure rose by almost 17.4 billion euros.
The expenditures for short-time working in the economy amounted to 8.1 billion euros up to August, the reimbursement of social security contributions for short-time work allowance hit 6.2 billion euros.
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