Germany holds decision-making power, not the convenient targets for blame.
Unlike╝ many other EU states, Ukrainian refugees struggle to integrate within Germany's job market. Rather than tackling the matter, CDU politicians mainly blame Ukrainians as scapegoats.
Scrolling through some recent statements from CDU politicians, one can't help but feel that this is now their favored topic: welfare payments and refugees from Ukraine.
Thorsten Frei, parliamentary spokesperson for the Union faction, wrote in an article that welfare payments for war refugees create wrong incentives. According to Frei, numerous armed Ukrainian males have come to Germany, hiding instead of fighting in their homeland - all for a few hundred euros in welfare.
Steffen Bilger, another CDU member, took things even further in his statement. Bilger seemed to believe that over 1.2 million Ukrainians moved to Germany solely because of the welfare payments. This idea is unrealistic when considering that the welfare system for Ukrainian refugees was only introduced in January 2023, long after the beginning of the large-scale Russian invasion in Ukraine.
Other Countries Have Absorbed More Ukrainians
These surviving Ukrainians should have instigated a pressing debate during yesterday's Minister President Conference. Instead, the focus was on the welfare payments for Ukrainian refugees, rather than the labor market issues that have concerned politics for years, such as the integration of poorly educated refugees and migrants. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 45% of the Ukrainians who have fled to Germany are aged between 25-59 and hold a university or vocational college degree. In comparison, only 27% of this age group in the overall German population hold an academic degree.
A comparison with other EU countries, many of which have absorbed more Ukrainian refugees per capita, is enlightening. Czech Republic, with a population of fewer than 11 million, houses almost 3.5% of its total population as Ukrainian refugees. This is followed by Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Slovakia, and Ireland, where the proportion of Ukrainian refugees is over 2%. Most countries in the region, where social benefits are fewer than in Germany, are included in this list. In regions where politicians like Bilger criticize the unfair distribution of Ukrainian refugees within the EU, they make up only 1.35% of the total population.
The Czech Republic released a press statement in February of this year, highlighting that Ukrainian refugees have paid more taxes and fees to the state than the aid they received. This is hardly surprising, given that the employment rate among Ukrainian refugees in Germany was only 19% in 2023, compared to 66% in the Czech Republic. This integration success is not a unique case in the region.
Denmark Excels in Integration
The Danish labor market is particularly noteworthy. In the first quarter of 2023, 80% of the 20,000 Ukrainian refugees who had arrived there were employed. This is a significantly higher employment rate than in Germany. The Danish government has pledged not to introduce a special welfare system for Ukrainian refugees, but to integrate them into the existing system instead. This contrasts starkly with Germany, where the Federal Government has introduced a special welfare system for Ukrainian refugees.
In summary, the integration of Ukrainian refugees into Germany's job market is a significant challenge. Instead of addressing this issue, CDU politicians tend to blame Ukrainians as scapegoats. A look at other EU countries that have absorbed more Ukrainian refugees per capita and have achieved better integration results is essential. Denmark excels in this area.
This disparity cannot be explained solely by language barriers, as often suggested when discussing the integration of Ukrainians into neighboring east European countries. Denmark, for example, was the front-runner last year, with an employment rate of 78%, despite Danish not being a Slavic language. Belonging to the Slavic language family does not ensure that Ukrainians can easily converse with each other in Eastern Europe. However, Poland, which has accepted nearly 960,000 Ukrainian refugees, seems to circumvent this hurdle. Some personnel leasing companies even offer language support when mediating Ukrainian IT experts in Poland. This leads to a 65% employment rate for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.
On the other hand, job-seeking refugees in Poland must first complete integration courses. These courses include a lengthy language course as well as an orientation course. While possessing good language skills certainly aids integration, lead times for these mandatory courses can reach several months, making it unsurprising that the current unsatisfactory integration of Ukrainian refugees in the job market is a cause for concern. Instead of addressing and removing bureaucratic obstacles like the slow recognition of diplomas, the blame is shifted elsewhere. That's simply easier.
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Despite Germany's welfare payments for Ukrainian refugees, only 19% of them were employed in 2023, while the employment rate was significantly higher in countries like Denmark and Poland. This raises questions about the CDU's focus on blaming Ukrainian refugees for their struggles in integrating into the German job market, rather than addressing the underlying issues.
In light of the successful integration of Ukrainian refugees in other EU countries, particularly Denmark, it's crucial for Germany to reconsider its approach and prioritize helping Ukrainian refugees find employment, rather than using them as scapegoats for political gain.
