Good news for Albanians/ Germany needs 400,000 workers a year, here is what is expected

The head of the Federal Labor Agency, Andrea Nahles, expresses doubts about the success of the German immigration laws. Long waiting times for visas at consulates create disadvantages compared to other countries.

Due to lengthy visa procedures at German embassies abroad, the head of the Federal Labor Agency, Andrea Nahles, doubts the success of the immigration laws. Nahles told the German newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung" that "she is not convinced that the right number of workers can be achieved with these proposals". The Social Democrat emphasized that there are still many difficult points to cross. The lack of personnel in the offices of foreigners in German municipalities is also a problem.

Due to demographic change, Germany is short hundreds of thousands of workers, according to experts. As of now, there are big bottlenecks in the sector of educators and social workers, but also in health care. According to data from the Institute for Labor Market and Occupation Studies, around 400,000 workers are needed annually to fill the gaps in the German labor market.

Nahles has criticized the German consulates for months of waiting for potential immigrants to work. "This is a significant competitive advantage against other countries, at a time when we, with our complicated language, are already at a disadvantage with countries in the English-speaking world." The head of the Federal Labor Agency proposes that in order to speed up the procedures at foreign missions, only the issues related to security should be clarified. According to Nahles "the workforce can come to Germany and other legal issues can be clarified here."

Referring to the offices for foreigners, Nahles took as an example some states such as Bavaria or the Saarland that have created central points of the state for foreign workers. "These roads can also cross other lands.". In addition, Germany must actively advertise abroad. This is not the task of the Federal Labor Agency, said Nahles, we don't even have personnel for this. The German government cabinet approved at the end of November the draft law on labor immigration. Among other things, it envisages the "chance card", with which a potential workforce can travel to Germany without presenting a work contract from abroad. Beyond this, the criteria for the salary level will be lowered and the recognition of foreign qualifications will be facilitated./ DW