Business is complaining louder and louder about the lack of skilled workers. In the opinion of Social Affairs Minister Drese, however, companies often leave existing labor potential untapped.
Schwerin (dpa/mv) – Social Affairs Minister Stefanie Drese (SPD) has called on companies in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to also give older or disabled employees a chance when filling vacancies. “It doesn’t fit that there are many complaints about a labor shortage and at the same time over 700 companies from a good 3,000 private employers in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania with 20 or more employees have not employed any severely disabled people,” said Drese on Tuesday in Schwerin after a meeting with Markus Biercher. He has been head of the North Regional Directorate of the Federal Employment Agency since August.
Two thirds of the approximately 4,000 unemployed people with disabilities have completed vocational training. The proportion of well-qualified workers is thus above the average for all unemployed people. “People with disabilities have great potential that employers should recognize and use much more than before,” warned Drese. At the same time, she drew attention to funding offers and integration aids. Among other things, there are grants for the disabled-friendly establishment of jobs and training places as well as for technical work aids and also for special further education and training courses. Detailed information is available from the Federal Employment Agency and the Integration Office of the State Office for Health and Social Affairs (Lagus).
According to the law, private and public employers with at least 20 employees are obliged to fill at least five percent of their jobs with severely disabled people. According to the Ministry of Social Affairs in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, this affects around 3,300 employers. But only half fully meet the requirement, the other half only partially or not at all and pay a so-called compensatory levy, it said. Agency boss Biercher referred to the often untapped potential of older employees. 8,250 people aged 60 and over are currently registered as unemployed. A good 80 percent of them have a professional qualification. And yet there are reservations about this age group. Biercher called for “a new image of old age that gives different weight to life experience, practical knowledge, commitment and loyalty”. At the same time, it is important to adapt the company framework, for example through company health management and age-appropriate workplace design.