Cheap labor comes to Germany

[dalegg 143]

Source

Berlin/Vienna - Germany and Austria opened their labour markets to eight central and eastern European Union member states on Sunday, amid fears by trade unions and opposition parties that the move could force down wages.

From midnight, citizens of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia were free to seek employment in Germany and Austria without requiring a work permit.

These countries all joined the EU in 2004, and its citizens have been free to work in other member states since then.

'Unfortunately there are a number of German employers who hope for cheap labour from the East and who think they can evade their duty to train workers and pay fair wages,' said Michael Sommer, head of the German Confederation of Trade Unions.

Speaking at a May Day event in Kassel, Sommer repeated his call for a legal minimum wage.

Austrian labour unions took a softer stance as they are largely satisfied with a newly passed law that threatens companies with fines if they pay less than minimum wages bargained between unions and industry groups.

Around 100,000 immigrants are expected in Germany each year following the end of the restriction, while its southern neighbour Austria projects up to 20,000 migrants.

Governments in both countries see the change as a chance to meet shortages in skilled labour and sought to ease concerns Sunday.

German authorities would step up efforts to investigate wage dumping and illegal employment, German Labour Minister Ursula von der Leyen announced in an interview with the newspaper Bild am Sonntag

Meanwhile, opposition parties also voiced concerns.

German Left Party parliamentary leader Gregor Gysi warned that cheaper foreign labour would push down salaries. He said he had no problem if an employer prefers Polish workers over German ones based on qualification.

'But if he says he'll take him because he's cheaper, then I have a problem,' Gysi told Deutschlandfunk public radio.

He added that the opening up of the labour market could stoke resentment among German labourers, in turn feeding into radical right-wing ideology.

Austrian far-right leader Heinz-Christian Strache has been connecting the issues of labour migration and crime over the past years.

'The only possibility to control all these eastern gangs is to reintroduce border controls,' the Freedom Party chief said at a rally on Sunday.

Austria's eastern neighbours are the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia, while Germany shares borders with Poland and the Czech Republic.

Edited May 2, 2011 by dalegg

[Danno 1,228]

Are we to believe the supply of Turks dried up... or did they bring too much baggage?

Edited May 2, 2011 by Danno

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Are we to believe the supply of Turks dried up... or did they bring too much baggage?

Clearly, you have no idea...

[dalegg 143]

One thing we know is that if there gets to be too many and there's a debate about building a wall....

Edited May 2, 2011 by dalegg

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

One thing we know is that if there gets to be too many and there's a debate about building a wall....

Almost funny. Only the wall wasn't built to address an influx of population but to stop people from leaving.

[Dakine10 5,452]

Most other EU countries allowed this in 2004 when the eastern European countries you listed joined the EU. Germany managed to pass a 7 year transitional period which restricted access to labor markets. It's not like they didn't see this coming. Everyone knew the date. Corporations and universities in Poland have been recruiting academics and skilled labor from non EU countries further east for years now in preparation for the exodus of labor that has been estimate as high as 150,000 people per year.

[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

I didn't even realize Germany did not allow citizens of certain EU member countries to work there.

I thought a large number of Poles returned home from places like the UK and Ireland when those economies started tanking

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

The damage joining the EU did to Germany can't be undone, ever.

[Ban Hammer 13,489]

The damage joining the EU did to Germany can't be undone, ever.

amen.