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Hartz IV: Criticism of the repayment of a 9-euro ticket – "Lost connection to reality"

2022-06-21T12:05:57.995Z


Hartz IV: Criticism of the repayment of a 9-euro ticket – "Lost connection to reality" Created: 06/21/2022, 1:55 p.m By: Lisa Mayerhofer In Baden-Württemberg, Hartz IV recipients had to pay back money because of the nine-euro ticket. Critics describe the process as “grotesque and unscrupulous”. Karlsruhe – The nine-euro ticket is intended to give people in Germany a good opportunity to save mo


Hartz IV: Criticism of the repayment of a 9-euro ticket – "Lost connection to reality"

Created: 06/21/2022, 1:55 p.m

By: Lisa Mayerhofer

In Baden-Württemberg, Hartz IV recipients had to pay back money because of the nine-euro ticket.

Critics describe the process as “grotesque and unscrupulous”.

Karlsruhe – The nine-euro ticket is intended to give people in Germany a good opportunity to save money in view of the rising cost of living.

But that doesn't apply to everyone: Affected Hartz IV recipients in Baden-Württemberg now had to pay back money because of the nine-euro ticket.

However, the approach has met with nationwide criticism.

Criticism of repayment of nine-euro tickets for Hartz IV recipients

The socio-political spokeswoman for the SPD parliamentary group, Dorothea Kliche-Behnke, called the procedure

"grotesque and unscrupulous" in the

Badische Latest News .

The state chairman of the social association VdK, Hans-Josef Hotz, considers the legal situation to be understandable.

From a human point of view, however, one should refrain from claims for reimbursement, he told the newspaper from Karlsruhe.

According to the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, the issue for the months of June to August is that the expenses for student tickets in the granted basic security benefits are reduced to nine euros.

During this time, these no longer cost the usual, mostly double-digit price from the transport companies.

And the job centers only cover actual expenses.

Some job centers had changed that in good time, said a spokesman on Friday in Stuttgart.

In individual cases, the old amount was still paid out for June.

The fact that overpaid funds have to be repaid is a normal administrative process.

"There is no financial damage to the families," said the spokesman.

"Especially for these children and young people, the nine-euro ticket is still a great benefit, because it can be used to cover significantly longer distances than with school tickets."

In Baden-Württemberg, Hartz IV recipients had to pay back money because of the nine-euro ticket.

(Archive image) © Frank Rumpenhorst/dpa/Illustration

Other people who receive basic security benefits for job seekers could buy a nine-euro ticket from the lump sum provided to secure their livelihood if necessary.

"Repayments based on the nine-euro ticket are not made here because the decision on how to actually use them lies with the recipients of the aid." Basically, people benefited more because they could save thanks to the cheap ticket.

Nine-euro ticket: Job centers incur “considerable administrative effort” as a result of reclaims

According to the newspaper, the Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs said that a waiver of the reclaim was not only appropriate in terms of social policy, but could also be derived from the regulations in the second book of the Social Security Code.

The reclaims result in the job centers “considerable administrative work, which the affected families neither caused nor intended”.

You will write to all state ministries, clearly explain your legal opinion and ask them to take this into account, the ministry said.

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The Ministry of Economic Affairs in Stuttgart replied that the education and participation benefits for schoolchildren in addition to their basic security needs are municipal benefits that are subject to the legal supervision of the federal states.

"In this respect, the statement by the federal government, which it only made afterwards, is not relevant here," said the spokesman.

It is therefore not intended to change the legal information to the job centers.

Parity welfare association: "Lost any connection to reality"

However, the Paritätische Wohlfahrtsverband is appealing to the federal states not to make any claims against Hartz IV families because of the nine-euro ticket.

"How cold-hearted, bureaucratic and completely without empathy poor families are treated here is simply shabby and unworthy of a welfare state," criticized general manager Ulrich Schneider on Friday in Berlin.

Schneider said: "Anyone who, like the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, speaks of 'unjust enrichment' in the event of non-repayment has apparently lost any connection to reality and obviously wants to stir up envy debates."

Criticism also came from the neighboring state of Rhineland-Palatinate: "I am of the opinion that the nine-euro ticket should by no means be counted towards the standard rates of social assistance and basic security for jobseekers," said Social Affairs Minister Alexander Schweitzer (SPD).

"In view of the high costs of energy, food and extremely dynamic inflation, the standard rates are too low anyway."

(lma/dpa)

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2022-06-21

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