Madsen: We need up to 13,000 skilled workers per year
Experts expect Schleswig-Holstein to need 180,000 additional skilled workers by 2035. Currently, however, only around 2,200 people from so-called third countries take up employment in the north each year as part of the accelerated skilled worker procedure, Minister of Labor Claus Ruhe Madsen (CDU) told the German Press Agency. "But in order to close our gap, we need an annual net immigration of between 10,000 and 13,000 qualified people." He hopes that the new Skilled Immigration Act will improve the situation.
This has already gradually come into force. A new feature is the introduction of a so-called opportunity card based on a points system. The selection criteria for immigrants willing to work who choose this route include language skills, professional experience, age and ties to Germany. In future, foreign skilled workers must achieve a minimum salary of around 43,800 euros, instead of the previous 58,400 euros gross per year.
Asylum seekers who arrived before March 29, 2023 and have a qualification and a job offer will be able to apply for a residence permit as a skilled worker if they withdraw their asylum application. Until now, they first had to leave the country and then apply for a work visa from abroad.
"The new immigration law can alleviate the skills gap in the north," said Madsen. Above all, he is relying on the introduction of a change of sector for all so-called non-regulated professions. "For companies in Schleswig-Holstein, this means that they will be able to hire international skilled workers who have completed vocational training in their home country for jobs that do not correspond to the profession they have learned." In this way, employers will have significantly more leeway when hiring in the future. For example, a foreign specialist in office management could in future also work in logistics.
The minister is also hoping for changes for professional drivers from third countries. Their entry procedure will be simplified, said Madsen. "In future, the employer will be able to decide whether German language skills are sufficient for the job."
In Madsen's opinion, however, there is a need for improvements to the regulations for the Western Balkans and for short-term employment. This could reduce seasonal staff shortages in the agricultural and catering sectors, which are important for Schleswig-Holstein. The federal government must ensure procedural certainty in the implementation of the law. "This requires an increase in personnel resources in visa offices and immigration authorities in order to quickly reduce the current processing backlog."
The Labor market in Schleswig-Holstein heavily relies on the Government to attract more skilled workers. As Madsen mentioned, the new Skilled Immigration Act aims to alleviate the skills gap by introducing a points system and altering salary requirements for foreign workers.
Source: www.dpa.com
