The new proposal mainly addresses relaxing migration policy for professionals outside the EU, since EU citizens enjoy free labor movement in the bloc.
A lack of skilled labor and a shortage of young people willing to commit to on-the-job training for up to 3-1/2 years have become big concerns for managers in Europe’s largest economy.
Germany bet on more than a million refugees who arrived in 2015 to fill workforce gaps, but a lack of German-language skills and the inability of most refugees to prove any qualifications has slowed the process.
A record 1.2 million jobs remain unfilled in Germany, the Federal Labour Office said earlier this month.
The German Interior, Labour and Economy ministries agreed to recruit more foreign skilled labor to Germany, the paper seen by Reuters showed.
They have sent the proposal paper to the rest of the cabinet, which will take a decision on it soon and changes to it are still possible, two government sources said.
“We will adjust the federal government’s concept of skilled labor and focus on three areas: domestic, European and international skilled worker potentials,” the paper, on which Interior Minister Horst Seehofer took the lead, said.
Seehofer, leader of the Christian Social Union (CSU) - Bavarian sister party to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU), takes a hard line on immigration and asylum issues. He vowed in July to present a migration law for professional workers by autumn.
Seehofer faces a tough regional vote in Bavaria in October, when the AfD is expected to win seats in the state assembly. The anti-immigrant AfD’s popularity has surged since the migrant influx and it became the country’s third largest party in September’s election.
Germany already has a “blue card” system that makes it easier for companies to hire foreign academics and professionals.
The paper proposes that the government will no longer insist that companies give preference to German citizens in filling vacancies before looking for non-EU foreigners.
Graduates and workers with vocational training will have an opportunity to come to Germany to look for a job within a certain period of time if they meet qualification and language requirements.
They will not have access to social welfare benefits during that period but will be allowed to work in jobs for which they are overqualified so they can earn some money, the paper added.
Qualification recognition procedures in Germany will become faster and easier, the paper said, adding that the government is planning an advertising campaign in selected countries.
How do we let in thousands of workers only to discover we don't have enough 'skilled' workers?
What the heck is going on?
Amusing....because Trump is asking the same thing for OUR immigration policy.
You will not get skilled labor from muzzies.
They’re going to bring in Africans and Muslims to solve their skilled labor problem while turning German cities into the South Bronx. Brilliant!!
Like this wasn't clear as day ahead of time to everyone?! They must think we're industrial strength stupid.
Germany is for all practical purposes open borders for unskilled workers, esp. from third world cesspools. But skilled workers? Not so much. This lame attempt at a fix is a joke. The chickens are coming home to roost.
Germans have decided not to replace themselves with young Germans.
Where’s Fritz Todt when you need him?
I wasn’t aware that they had to ease immigration laws to accomplish this. Perhaps those non existent immigration laws are only for Muslims. As long as you are a Muslim you can come no questions asked. Now they need people who have actual competencies in disciplines beyond how to kill non believers of Islam. Thus the need to ease immigration laws.
The key provision is the 3.5 year commitment to non the job training i.e. cheap labor.
HOW ABOUT INVESTING IN ACTUAL GETMAN PEOPLE. JEEBUS CRIPES.
Because it is really hard to find native Germans who are trained, experienced suicide bombers. So of course you need to find immigrants to fill those jobs.
They need to put a stop to immigration, deport their globalist and work on automation. Send the muzzies back to their home and preserve their unique Deutsch culture as much as possible.
Dumkofs. The spelling may be off but you know what I mean.
Sounds good on paper - immigration policy should be oriented around bringing in the high achievers you think will help your country the most. But that all gets undermined when you allow millions of people from some of the most backward and savage nations in the world to enter, claim refugee status and begin the disintegration of your society. Germany’s time to pick and choose is probably in the rear view mirror.
Angela could teach Hillary a thing or two about getting elected _while_ destroying your own country.
They don’t have enough Muslim terrorists, rapists, pedophiles, gun murderers, knife murderers, car, van and truck murderers, bomb vest murderers, etc... in Germany yet.
Why do I get a mental picture of Curly of the Three Stooges drilling holes in a sinking boat “to let the water out”?
It should be documented skills and known gaps. Not hard to do.