2024-03-04 08:25:57
Job applicants in Germany who have foreign names often have a lower chance of success. Manifestations of discrimination also occur in the workplace. And the country needs hundreds of thousands of foreigners for all professions
Germany needs skilled labor in many fields, but racism and the rise of right-wing parties are turning away many potential candidates. Businesses now want to change that. For the first time, employers and unions are declaring war on extremism. Earlier this week, the Association of Metallurgists of Baden-Württemberg and the metalworkers’ union IG Metall joined forces in this fight. So they followed German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s call for a broad alliance in support of democracy and against extremism. The initiative was immediately supported by car manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz and Porsche.
Shortage of 400,000 specialists per year
Germany is in urgent need of skilled labor from abroad. The share of older people is increasing, and people from the generation of so-called baby boomers are gradually retiring. According to the Institute for Employment Research, Germany needs about 400,000 skilled workers from abroad every year.
In addition, fewer and fewer people are coming from Eastern Europe, which means that immigrants from third countries – that is, from countries outside the EU – will become increasingly important. But they may be put off by recent reports of racism and discrimination in Germany, particularly in relation to the secret plans of the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany, which has discussed extraditing people with a migrant background.
“In the state of Baden-Württemberg, we wouldn’t be able to produce cars, create machines, or run buses if we didn’t have people of different nationalities in our factories,” says trade unionist Barbara Resch. She believes society should send a clear a signal against the extreme right.
An employer forbids speaking in Turkish
A case documented by the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency shows what racism can look like in the workplace. Mr. A., as the man in the particular case is called, is of Turkish origin and has several fellow compatriots. During the break, they talk to each other in both languages - but this did not please their employer and he banned the conversations in Turkish. For the Anti-Discrimination Agency, this is a clear case of “discrimination based on ethnic origin”.
Such cases are not isolated. Numerous studies in recent years have also shown that acts of discrimination can be part of the daily life of many people with a visible migration background. In 2016, a large-scale study by the Austrian University of Linz related to the labor market in Germany caused quite a stir. It showed that women with Muslim names were less likely to be invited to job interviews. And if the candidate in the photo also wears a headscarf, her chance of success is even lower.
Bad certificate for Germany
In 2023, an EU survey found that black people in Germany feel particularly discriminated against. Of the 13 EU countries surveyed by the EU’s Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA), Germany fared the worst: 51% of respondents in Germany felt particularly disadvantaged when looking for work. A recent OECD study showed that more than the majority of skilled foreign workers in Germany have been discriminated against.
A study by the IAW Institute for Applied Economic Research came to the same conclusion, according to which 51% of respondents confirmed that they had encountered acts of discrimination. For the most part (2/3) these were highly qualified specialists from non-European countries. And for just over 5 percent of them, this was enough of a reason for them to leave Germany, it is clear from this study, writes “Deutsche Welle”.