Germany’s challenge to attract foreign professionals

Due to the shortage of skilled labor in various sectors, the European country is looking for professionals abroad. But measures are needed to facilitate the immigration of interested parties. In Germany there is a shortage of qualified professionals in several areas, such as nursing and elderly care. There are also difficulties in filling vacancies in education, social care, technical areas, metallurgy and information technology.

According to the Competence Center for the Guarantee of Skilled Workforce (Kofa), a project of the German Ministry of Economy, in purely mathematical terms, 632,488 vacancies in Germany could not be filled by the skilled unemployed in 2022. This gap only widens in the last years.

German politicians have known for years that Germany needs to invest more in finding skilled labor abroad. And that the country must become more open and attractive to immigrants, also by removing bureaucratic obstacles.

Politicians want quick results

Although the issue has been dragging on for years, the current government now wants to speed things up. The focus is on an immigration law that aims to facilitate the immigration of skilled workers from countries outside the European Union. The project is still under discussion.

The German government has also agreed to change the rules for granting citizenship. The change provides for the possibility of naturalization after five years instead of eight; in some cases even after three. Furthermore, it should no longer be necessary to renounce the previous citizenship, as is still required.

Priyanka Mane is happy that politicians and companies want to improve their recruitment of skilled foreign workers. Mane herself came to Germany from India in 2016, she completed a master’s degree in business IT in Nuremberg and then managed to enter the world of work. Today you work as an IT product manager for a car manufacturer.

But the story of Priyanka Mane, 29, is more of an isolated case, whose success is largely due to her own ambition. “At the time, there was hardly any information that studying here, for example, was free or that there was a good work-life balance.”

After going through so many difficulties, at some point she herself started sharing information on social media about the possibilities that exist, how to find the right sites, how the application processes work in Germany.

Job descriptions in German only

Mane currently has over 160,000 followers on Instagram. Advising people interested in working in Germany, mainly from India, but also from African countries or the Philippines, has become her second profession.

It thus fills a gap, as much information is not easily accessible to foreigners: for example, what is the demand for a certain profession in Germany, what is the salary, how should a CV be prepared for German employers, what diplomas are recognized, among others.

The list is long, and in some respects, major improvements can be made with relatively little effort. “On the Internet, job descriptions are often only in German, even if later the working language is English.” According to Mane, it is often unclear whether a company will take care of the visa and help with finding accommodation.

Bureaucracy in Germany is still an obstacle

Along with language and diploma recognition, visas are one of the biggest barriers for skilled workers from outside the European Union. The process is complicated and time consuming, which can be daunting for professionals and businesses alike.

There are several schemes for the recruitment of skilled workers in Germany, within which these aspects are greatly simplified. One of them is the so-called “Handwerk bietet Zukunft” (HabiZu), a project funded by the Ministry of Economy that supports technical service companies in hiring employees in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The idea of ​​the project is that foreign workers are employed as specialists and not just assistants. “In a small company, there is no one who can be tasked with establishing contacts in a country outside the EU. Something like this is, of course, much easier for a hospital, for example,” says Ralf Meier, who directs the project coordinated by the Sequa development body.

Initial help in the onboarding phase is invaluable

Sequa follows the entire recruitment process of the project, working closely with the Employment Agency in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Federal Employment Agency in Germany. Again in their country of origin, for example, candidates follow a free German course. It also determines the extent to which your professional education can be recognized in Germany. Finally, they are put in contact with companies.

In Germany, participants receive support in resolving legal issues, looking for accommodation and more. “Looking for an apartment is hard enough, and for someone who comes from abroad and obviously doesn’t earn much to start with, it’s even worse,” says Meier.

However, with the imminent end of the pilot project, benefits such as the free German course or integration support will disappear. Ultimately, far fewer skilled workers will be hired than anticipated at the start of the project in 2020.

“We have learned that the immigration of skilled workers is not as simple as many would like to imagine,” complains Meier. “Many people all over the world want to find a good job, and maybe even in Germany. But there are difficulties on many aspects and, first of all, investment is needed.”

On the other hand, the project provided valuable practical experience for policy and business. “We can say that the glass is half empty and half full at the same time,” concludes Meier.

This is also the opinion of Priyanka Mane, for whom the government’s pilot projects – such as “Hand in Hand”, which specifically targets Brazilians, Indians and Vietnamese – are excellent. But there needs to be more, she argues, and that support should be broader.

And he repeats his appeal to German companies and the federal government: “Hire skilled workers in English, provide information in English. Otherwise you will never reach the right people.”

Source: Terra

Rose

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.