Warning against cuts to voluntary services
The League of Independent Welfare Organizations in Baden-Württemberg has warned of what it sees as the dramatic consequences of planned cuts to voluntary services. "If these were to be implemented, 4,500 young people in the south-west would lose the opportunity to gain professional orientation through voluntary work," explained the head of the league, Marc Groß, with a view to the upcoming budget discussions in the Bundestag.
The draft budget for the coming year provides for savings of 78 million euros nationwide in voluntary services such as the Social and Ecological Year (FSJ/FÖJ) and the Federal Voluntary Service (BFD). The budget committee of the Bundestag will meet in Berlin on Thursday (November 16) to discuss the final budget.
There are a total of 20,000 places in the FSJ, FÖJ and Federal Voluntary Service in the south-west. The League accounts for 10,000 places. Funds must be increased, not cut, said Groß and added: "We must not cut back on social cohesion." Social benefits are the basis for the functioning of the economy, for example when caregiving relatives are relieved.
Groß foresees serious cuts in personnel recruitment. "There will not only be a lack of support in many social areas at the moment, but above all a lack of trained specialists in two or three years' time," said Groß. The "sticking effect" of voluntary services - i.e. the percentage of those who take up training in the same sector after volunteering - is 40 to 50 percent. For hospitals, nursing homes, emergency services, disaster control, facilities for the disabled and migration counseling, the search for personnel will be even more difficult than it already is.
The Federal Volunteer Service is an opportunity for people of all ages to get involved for the common good outside of work and school - in social, ecological and cultural areas, in sport, integration work and in civil protection and disaster control. According to the German government, around 86,000 people were involved in the Federal Volunteer Service ("Bufdi") or a voluntary social or ecological year at the end of 2022.
The impending cuts are also a thorn in the side of the Association of Cities and Towns. People in Baden-Württemberg would directly feel the effects of the cuts planned by the federal government in the social budget. The cities would not be able to compensate for the loss of federal benefits. "It will be dark for the people in the cities and municipalities in the state if the federal government sticks to the planned cuts in the social budget of around 25 percent," summarized the association of municipalities.
The Bundestag's budget committee needs to consider the warnings from aid organizations like the League of Independent Welfare Organizations in Baden-Württemberg, who opposes the proposed cuts to aid programs such as the Federal Voluntary Service. These cuts could potentially affect 4,500 young people in the south-west who rely on voluntary work for professional orientation.
Additionally, the League of Independent Welfare Organizations argues that reducing funds for voluntary services could have long-term consequences, leading to a lack of trained specialists in social areas and making personnel recruitment even more challenging for sectors like hospitals, nursing homes, and migration counseling.
Source: www.dpa.com
