Citizens' money instead of Hartz IV: 150 euros incentive - that's what the traffic light says in the coalition agreement

Created: 12/23/2021, 04:48 AM

By: Patrick Freiwah

Hartz IV will in future be called Bürgergeld.

To this end, the standard rate for low-income people will be raised a little.

But how many euros?

A solution seems within reach.

• Hartz IV recipients should receive more money in the future (see initial notification).

• The traffic light coalition has signed a coalition agreement for the years 2021 to 2025.

• The minimum wage will be increased to 12 euros (see update from November 24th, 3:30 p.m.).

Update from November 24th, 3:30 p.m.:

Hartz IV will be abolished.

Instead, a citizen's allowance is to be introduced (see initial notification).

This is what the SPD, Greens and FDP have set out in their coalition agreement for the years 2021 to 2025.

The focus is on respect for the dignity of the individual.

In addition, the newly created citizens' money should enable social participation and be uncomplicated and also accessible digitally, according to the parties of the traffic light alliance.

In the first two years of receiving citizen benefits, this benefit should be granted without crediting the assets.

Bürgergeld replaces Hartz IV and should be uncomplicated and accessible digitally

For people who are unemployed, the coalition parties have decided to expand the independent promotion of basic skills and to make it clear that placement in a job does not have priority over vocational training or further education that could strengthen the job prospects of the unemployed. For this purpose, SGB II and III beneficiaries with professional qualifications are to receive an additional training allowance of 150 euros per month. This is intended to create an incentive for the unemployed to continue their education. Anyone who cannot find a job immediately after completing the relevant training should be entitled to unemployment benefit * for at least three months.

According to the coalition agreement, the minimum wage will be increased to twelve euros per hour. The independent minimum wage commission will then decide on further increases. In order to strengthen the collective bargaining system, the coalition also supported the EU Commission's proposal for a directive on appropriate minimum wages with a fixed poverty level. During the negotiations, the traffic light parties are planning to advocate binding minimum standards, as they will apply in Germany following the resolution of the new minimum wage law (more on this at

*).

The coalition parties SPD, Greens and FDP want to strengthen the statutory pension for everyone.

There should be no pension cuts.

The statutory retirement age * will not be raised either.

Instead, the minimum pension level of 48 percent should be permanently secured.

During this legislative period, the contribution rate will not rise above 20 percent.

First report from November 24th, 9.45 a.m .:

Munich - whether in the energy sector or in the food sector: the price spiral turned upwards noticeably in 2021.

The development in Germany is putting pressure on the low-income in particular, who have to cope with more costs with little financial means.

As a consequence, the next federal government is planning a reform of the labor market, also in order to give Hartz IV recipients more money in the future.

Citizens' money to replace Hartz IV: Apparently agreement on the new standard rate

On the one hand, Hartz IV * will be abolished in the next legislative period and replaced by a so-called Bürgergeld *.

On the other hand, the coalition parties Greens, SPD and FDP are struggling to find a solution with a view to more social aid for the lower income group.

The negotiating partners are said to have agreed on an increase of 31 euros per month, as

reported by the

portal

.

Hartz 4 recipients who are living alone currently receive a monthly standard rate * of 446 euros from the state.

In addition, there is the assumption of the cost of accommodation.

As of January 2022, salaries will increase marginally - by three euros to 449 euros.

Ulrich Schneider, head of the Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband, described this increase as a “joke” and “sheer mockery”, which did not even come close to compensating for the increased cost of living in the Federal Republic.

If the citizen's benefit in the scenario described increases by 31 euros, the income for the unemployed would be 480 euros.

Citizens' money: traffic light coalition disagree on increasing the standard rate

The potential government alliance of the Greens, SPD and FDP is said to be in tough negotiations with regard to the coalition agreement, because this increased amount alone would tear a multi-digit billion hole in the state coffers for those receiving citizenship. This is particularly feared due to the fact that huge investment projects are also necessary in other areas such as climate protection. The great promise of labor market reform threatens to reach its limits the more the negotiators delve into the details.

The Greens and the SPD seem to be more on the same wavelength than the FDP.

The Green Youth in particular is promoting the issue of compensation for low-income people due to the additional burdens caused by inflation.

In the case of citizens' money, 600 to 650 euros are appropriate as the standard rate, said federal spokeswoman Sarah-Lee Heinrich * with reference to calculations by the parliamentary group.

The future traffic light coalition partners must also find a common path when it comes to citizens' money.

© Mike Schmidt / Imago Images

Employment broker and Hartz IV critic Inge Hannemann reacted after the apparently reached agreement became known with an angry message: “The poorest remain the last in the chain.

It is a shame and antisocial to the extreme, "said the author in a tweet.

Bürgergeld replaces Hartz IV: It also depends on the wage gap requirement

As the Forsa Institute determined on behalf of the Paritätischer Gesamtverband, the majority of Germans also consider the current Hartz IV rate to be too little: According to the survey, around 85 percent of those surveyed believe that 80 percent should be more money to ensure basic services.

That would mean an average of 811 euros instead of the current standard rate.

But social assistance is far from this, which is mainly due to the following point: Higher social assistance is related to the wage gap requirement.

Those who work full-time have to end up having more in their pockets than Hartz IV recipients who are at the subsistence level.

This means that nationwide wages would have to rise in order to be able to adjust the standard rates for the unemployed accordingly.