[Economics] The Economic Slant in Germanys New Migration Laws 2019-06-13

On June 7, 2018 the Bundestag passed or debated seven new asylum and migration policy regulations. Three of these have an economic and four domestic orientation. The sum of the new regulations was criticized on the one hand for the fact that for some regulations there was hardly any time to deal with them in detail. On the other hand Federal Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) who is responsible for several of these regulations has drawn criticism. Seehofer (CSU) said in an interview that one receives easier approval for controversial laws if one makes them complicated so they attract less attention. [1] [2]

1. Experts immigration law (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz)
2. Foreign Employment Promotion Act (Ausländerbeschäftigungsförderungsgesetz)
3. Amendment of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (Änderung des Asylbewerberleistungsgesetzes)
4. Conclusion

Experts immigration law (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz)

The most extensive new regulations according to scope and effect and with an economic orientation is the Experts immigration law (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz). There is already a list of so-called shortage jobs (Mangelberufe) these are jobs for which labor migration is facilitated because domestic labor supply is considered too low there. It is now agreed in the new skilled labor immigration law that labor migration will continue to open due to the supposed shortage of skilled workers. For this purpose the Federal Government has been working on a bill since at least December 2018 the essential positions of which have remained unchanged since then. [3,p.2] [4,p.71] [5]

Ziel des Gesetzesentwurfs ist es daher, die Bedarfe des Wirtschaftsstandortes Deutschland und die Fachkräftesicherung durch eine gezielte und gesteuerte Zuwanderung von Fachkräften aus Drittstaaten zu flankieren und so einen Beitrag zu einem nachhaltigen gesellschaftlichen Wohlstand zu leisten.

The aim of the draft law is therefore to flank the needs of Germany as a business location and to safeguard skilled workers through targeted and controlled immigration of third-country specialists thereby contributing to sustainable social prosperity. [3,p.2] [4,p.71]

The credibility of claiming a shortage of skilled employers is inversely proportional to unemployment and the rise in wage levels. In certain fields it can happen that the demand for employees can not cover the supply of jobs. In such a case in a functioning market either the equilibrium price in the form of the wage level would increase. However wages are currently stagnating in much of Europe and the industrialized world. If one is unwilling to pay a reasonable price for a good or service then one can not complain about a shortage at this price. Or employers would resort to training young workers or retraining other workers with a different education.

Auf die Vorrangprüfung wird bei Fachkräften im Grundsatz verzichtet; verbunden wird dies jedoch mit der Möglichkeit, auf Veränderungen des Arbeitsmarktes unkompliziert reagieren und die Vorrangprüfung kurzfristig wieder einführen zu können.

The priority check for professionals is abandonded in principle; this is linked to the possibility of being able to react easily to changes in the labor market and to be able to reintroduce the priority test at short notice. [3,p.6] [4,p.131]

One major change is the abolition of the priority review, which requires that nationals and equivalent EU foreigners be favored in the labor market over third-country nationals. However this harmless-sounding opening leads to an oversupply of workers and to increased wage pressure and thus wage cuts. An oversupply of workers leads to fewer long-term resident or equivalent EU foreigners being educated. In addition the people who are being recruited are missing in their countries of origin. And if the countries of origin are economically weak states this loss is particularly hard. [3,p.6] [4,p.131] [5]

• Experts immigration law (Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz):
1. People should be allowed to work in Germany if they have a contract of employment and a recognized vocational training. This previously only applied to so-called shortage jobs (Mangelberufe) which were defined by the Federal Employment Agency. The priority examination for persons with vocational training is generally abandonded.
2. Persons with a vocational training and those who are looking for an apprenticeship may travel to Germany for half a year to look for a job or apprenticeship.
3. People should be allowed to enter Germany to receive additional qualification and recognition of foreign professional qualifications.
4. In order to make administrative procedures more efficient central immigration authorities are to be set up. For this purpose the communication with the diplomatic missions abroad should be bundled and be available as a contact for domestic employers. For urgent cases an accelerated professional procedure will be established.

[4,p.131] Municipalities however are against letting foreigners into the country for them to search for a job or training place. According to the chief executive of the German Association of Towns and Municipalities (Deutschen Städte- und Gemeindebundes/DStGB) Gerd Landsberg sees the danger that those affected in unsuccessful search will not leave voluntarily. According to Landsberg the experience already shows that it is only insufficiently possible to enforce the actually obligatory departure of rejected asylum seekers. [6] [7]

Foreign Employment Promotion Act (Ausländerbeschäftigungsförderungsgesetz)

The Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) has introduced the Foreign Employment Promotion Act (Ausländerbeschäftigungsförderungsgesetz) which provides relief for asylum seekers who do not yet have a training or a job. Asylum seekers who are looking for jobseekers should be able to attend integration courses regardless of their prospects to stay. [8,p.15] [8,p.29] In addition tolerated asylum seekers should be able to attend additional German courses after six months. [8,p.23] The project runs under the keyword "lane change" (Spurwechsel) and proves that the Federal Government is less aimed at the departure or deportation. Originally the project was to be included in an immigration law. [2]

Amendment of the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (Änderung des Asylbewerberleistungsgesetzes)

The Federal Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) has also introduced a proposal to amend the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (Asylbewerberleistungsgesetzes) which should adapt the benefits to the requirements of the Federal Constitutional Court. According to this costs for electricity and housing maintenance are to be guaranteed as benefits in kind. Asylum seekers who live in shared accommodation should also receive a smaller amount. [2]

Conclusion

What is interesting about the new regulations on asylum and migration policy is that the Federal Government acts alone and has not sought any EU-wide regulation as it otherwise considers it to be without alternative. An EU-wide regulation that exists since 2009 but of course can be changed is the Blue Card. This allows people outside the EU and similar to the Green Card in the US to apply for jobs in the EU. [9,en] [9,de]

The new asylum and migration policy regulations show that the Federal Government is forcing the influx of people to Germany against the interests of the population. It is also clear how the interests of employers are mainly represented as agreed in the UN migration agreement. See: Global Compact for Migration , [Dossier] Global Compact for Migration

The public opinion will continue to be tarnished by this development. Today 58% in Germany desire less or no immigration at all. Thus Germany is above the European average of 51%. Only 10% want more immigration while 30% cope with the current situation. So the silent majority is against more immigration. [10] [11]

[1] Bericht aus Berlin: "Man muss Gesetze kompliziert machen." Bundesinnenminister @der_Seehofer erklärt, wie man bei Gesetzen Widerspruch umgeht. Im Bundestag wird morgen mit dem #Migrationspaket auch über sein Datenaustauschgesetz abgestimmt. #KongressWehrhafteDemokratie 2019-06-06
https://twitter.com/ARD_BaB/status/1136652811045941249
[2] Gesetze im Überblick - Was sich mit dem Migrationspaket ändert 2019-06-07
https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/asyl-koalition-hintergrund-101.html
[3] Gesetzentwurf der Bundesregierung - Entwurf eines Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetzes 2018-12-18
https://www.bmi.bund.de/SharedDocs/gesetzgebungsverfahren/DE/Downloads/kabinettsfassung/fachraefteeinwanderungsgesetz-kabinettsfassung.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=6
[4] Gesetzentwurf der Bundesregierung - Entwurf eines Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetzes 2019-03-13
http://dip21.bundestag.de/dip21/btd/19/082/1908285.pdf
[5] Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz 2018-12-21
https://www.bmas.de/DE/Presse/Meldungen/2018/fachkraefteeinwanderungsgesetz.html
[6] NOZ: Fachkräfte-Einwanderungsgesetz: Kommunen stemmen sich gegen Aufenthaltstitel für Jobsucher 2019-05-09
https://www.presseportal.de/pm/58964/4265400
[7] Kommunen stemmen sich gegen Aufenthaltstitel für Jobsucher 2019-05-09
https://presse-augsburg.de/kommunen-stemmen-sich-gegen-aufenthaltstitel-fuer-jobsucher/454890/
[8] Gesetzentwurf der Bundesregierung - Entwurf eines Gesetzes zur Förderung der Ausbildung und Beschäftigung von Ausländerinnen und Ausländern – Ausländerbeschäftigungsförderungsgesetz 2019-05-10
http://dip21.bundestag.de/dip21/btd/19/100/1910053.pdf
[9,en] MEPs support the European "Blue Card" proposal for highly-skilled immigrants 2008-11-20
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=IM-PRESS&reference=20081107FCS41562&format=XML&language=EN
[9,de] Die EU-Blue-Card: Idee, Ziele, Hoffnungen 2008-11-24
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+IM-PRESS+20081107FCS41562+0+DOC+XML+V0//DE
[10] Many worldwide oppose more migration – both into and out of their countries 2018-01-01
http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/12/10/many-worldwide-oppose-more-migration-both-into-and-out-of-their-countries/
[11] What Do Europeans Think About Muslim Immigration? 2017-02-07
https://www.chathamhouse.org/expert/comment/what-do-europeans-think-about-muslim-immigration