As of: April 6, 2024, 6:09 p.m
By: Bettina Menzel
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There is a shortage of skilled workers in Germany: 1.5 million immigrants per year would be necessary, according to the chairwoman of the economists, Monika Schnitzer (symbolic image). © IMAGO/Eva Kerrigan/Westend61
Over a million people from Ukraine are in Germany. Only one in five works. Germany desperately needs workers.
Berlin – The debate about citizens’ money continues. The latest point of contention: Citizens' benefits for Ukrainians. Over 1.1 million refugees from Ukraine are currently in Germany, around 716,000 of whom are of working age. But only about one in five people works. Given the acute shortage of skilled workers, this is a missed opportunity for the economy. Because Germany needs 1.5 million immigrants every year, as the chairwoman of the Economists, Monika Schnitzer, recently announced.
The untapped resource: Ukrainian skilled workers and the German labor market
The Union recently proposed that Ukrainians should only pay asylum benefits instead of citizens' benefits. “The federal government is making life difficult for us by immediately putting all Ukraine refugees on citizen’s allowance,” said
Reinhard Sager (CDU), President of the German District Association in an interview with Die
Welt
. Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) rejected the considerations and Bundestag member Helge Lindh (SPD) described the proposal to cut benefits as “inciting sentiment against refugees.”
But it is also true: the German labor market needs skilled workers and the majority of Ukrainians are well educated. According to a survey by the Federal Ministry of Labor, around 70 percent have a university degree. The Ministry of Labor recently launched the “Job Turbo” campaign to get people from Ukraine into work more quickly than before. Only 21 percent of Ukrainians of working age are employed.
What goes wrong with the integration of foreign workers in Germany?
In short: lots. Other countries are doing a much better job of integrating refugees from Ukraine into the labor market. An example of this are the Netherlands and Denmark. So-called “total refusers” - i.e. people who don't want to work - are rare among those receiving citizens' benefit. It is usually the bureaucratic hurdles that make entering the job market difficult. Child care, the duration of the recognition process and language skills also remain major challenges, emphasizes Daniel Terzenbach, the special representative of “Job Turbo” in an interview with the AFP news agency. The German labor market is “much more language dependent” than that of other countries.
Language skills are often crucial, especially for skilled workers. Integration courses should help. According to the Ministry of Labor, around 400,000 Ukrainians have started such a course so far. Around every second person has reached language level B1, another third has reached A2. But thanks to “Job-Turbo”, Ukrainians can be placed in jobs with language level A2 or higher. The new law for skilled immigration also provides for a reduction in bureaucratic hurdles for other foreign workers. In some cases, only language skills at level A2 may be required. For example, when specialists and employers commit to a recognition partnership.
Temporary integration: Does “Job-Turbo” have an effect?
According to the government, the Ministry of Labor's “job turbo” appears to be having its first effects: the number of positions registered with the Federal Employment Agency that could be filled by immigrants almost doubled from November to February, the Ministry of Labor said in March. Refugees are now receiving advice from job centers more often. Between November and February there were 225,000 additional conversations compared to the same period last year.
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In general, the proportion of employed Ukrainians is constantly growing, while the number of refugees from Ukraine in Germany remained relatively the same last year. This is good news for the economy. In many professional fields, the German labor market has only functioned for years thanks to people with foreign roots. According to the Federal Statistical Office, there are an above-average number of employees with an immigration background, particularly in cleaning professions (60 percent) and in the catering industry (46 percent). 27 of all doctors in this country also have a migration background.
The Russian attack forced many Ukrainians to flee. Many people probably want nothing more than to return to their homeland soon. But nobody knows exactly how long the Ukraine war will last. “Work is the best integration. Even if the Ukrainians seeking protection may be a temporary integration,” says the Ministry of Labor’s call for participation in the “Job-Turbo” program. With regard to the citizen's benefit debate, this means that two birds can be killed with one stone: Germany would have more skilled workers and fewer recipients of aid.