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Germany Offers Unemployed Workers Jobs at $1.99/hour
After 10 months of unsuccessful job applications, Christian Noelte accepted a position paying 1.50 euros ($1.99) an hour. Noelte is one of the first volunteers for a controversial German work promotion scheme paying far below a living wage. The government hopes it will drive the long-term unemployed back to work or at least make them more employable. Critics say the posts will exacerbate, rather than alleviate, the problems of Germany's labor market, potentially destroying existing positions and cutting the incentive to work.The jobs are not as bad as they seem. Those earning the meager monthly salaries of up to 180 euros ($239) retain their jobless benefits. Noelte, 25, was one of about 300 people who applied for 70 low-paying jobs in the Berlin suburb of Spandau. The positions also offer the promise of something better. Noelte worked previously as a gas and water system installer but now has a nine-month stint at a nursing home -- a change he hopes will prove to future employers that he is keen to work. "For me it's an opportunity to make myself more attractive to an employer and to show that I have drive," he said. Part of Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's controversial labor market reforms, the scheme starts officially in January. An extensive pilot program aims to employ around 50,000 long-term unemployed by the end of this year. There had been talk of 600,000 such posts by the end of 2005, but that target has been cut to about 350,000. Thousands of Germans have taken to the streets to protest the labor market reforms, which include benefit cuts for the long-term unemployed and increased pressure on them to take up jobs even if they are overqualified. The new scheme's posts were instantly dubbed "one euro jobs" by Germany's media, although the Federal Labor Office prefers "top-up job." The official title is "extra expense allowance" or MAE for short. Posted by: tipper 2004-12-06 |
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