After a visit to Kyiv, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his intention to create a Ukrainian administration in Germany to coordinate issues related to refugees from Ukraine between Kyiv and Berlin.
Only 21% of Ukrainian refugees of working age are employed in Germany
Today Ukrainians are the second largest group of foreigners in Germany. According to the Federal Statistical Office, the share of Ukrainians in the population of Germany has increased to 1.4% (Turks are in first place, making up 1.6% of the population). According to information from the Federal Employment Agency for November 2023, of the approximately 716 thousand Ukrainians of working age who arrived in Germany, only 21% are employed.
The Chancellor noted that employers often prefer to hire refugees who speak German well, and advised Ukrainians to enroll in language courses. He also clarified that he discussed employment issues with Volodymyr Zelensky and spoke about plans to create a Ukrainian agency that will deal with employment issues and the return of citizens home.
The Chancellor called on Ukrainians to find work or return to their homeland
According to NTV, the administration will coordinate issues related to refugees from Ukraine when they start finding work or returning to their homeland. Scholz emphasized that the German authorities support the idea that Ukrainians who have lived in the country for several years should look for work and study the language and culture of Germany.
Earlier, Scholz, speaking in the Bundestag, called on Ukrainian citizens who had fled their country to actively seek work in Germany, saying that they should otherwise return to their homeland.
German politicians, in solidarity with Scholz, have called for the abolition of the standard unemployment benefit for Ukrainian refugees in the country (Bürgergeld). In particular, the Secretary General of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) Bijan Djir-Sarai believes that newly arrived refugees from Ukraine should no longer receive such benefits in the future. According to him, the abolition of the standard unemployment benefit for Ukrainian refugees should be an additional incentive to look for work.
