Refugees in Germany – No minimum wage suggest top economic advisers

Berlin’s top economic advisers have recommended suspending the country’s minimum wage requirement to make refugees more attractive to employers. Easing access to the job market will help them integrate quicker, they say. 

The German economy is strong enough to stem the costs of the refugee crisis, the country’s economic “wise men” said in their annual report released Wednesday. But they also warned that the country’s minimum wage, introduced just this year, was a stumbling block for newcomers trying to gain a foothold on the job market.

The five-member panel, which is tasked with evaluating federal economic policies, suggested suspending the minimum wage of 8.50 euros ($9.1) for refugees to make them more attractive to employers.

“The minimum wage is likely to pose a barrier to entry [into the job market] for many refugees. Considering the growing supply of low-wage labor the minimum wage should under no circumstance be raised,” the group, officially known as the German Council of Economic Experts (GCEE), cautioned.

The government must make removing such barriers a top priority, the advisers said, arguing this would help newcomers better integrate into German society. In a September report , the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) echoed this sentiment, saying that providing easy access to the job market was the best way to turn refugees into a boon, not a burden, for host countries.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Germany′s ′wise men′ urge lower wages for refugees | Business | DW.COM | 11.11.2015