Life, Liberty and Property

Germany apparently found a “solution” to their unemployment problem. The new plan is to export the jobless workers to other countries. 

Plagued by high unemployment due to the turmoil of re-unification and rigid labor laws, Germany has been helping its skilled and less-skilled jobless workers match up with foreign employers searching for manpower.

As part of this plan, the German government will pay the relocation costs of the workers who leave the country. Of course, the German government could just ease those rigid labor laws, to try and make local businesses more willing to hire German employees. The Germans have obviously decided, however, that having these laws is worth the cost of paying to send their unemployed as far away as Australia in some cases.

As the article notes:

Economists and industry leaders say paying people to leave a country with a shrinking population and one of the lowest birth rates in the world is a recipe for disaster.

Shortages of skilled labour are now acute in industries such as engineering and carmaking but also loom in sectors such as retail, health care and finance, while “depopulation” has become an explosive issue in some areas, especially the formerly Communist east.

“In the short term, emigration takes people off jobless rolls, but in the long term we’re losing workers with skills. It’s usually the best and most flexible who leave. They’re also often at ages where they have children. They’re lost to Germany and obviously their children won’t contribute later either.”

Labor regulations are always going to make employers think twice about their decisions to hire anyone — but especially lower-skilled workers. If the work week is limited to 35 hours, employers will export jobs that require a 40-hour week to countries that don’t have that rule. If the minimum wage is $10/hour, you won’t have many openings for unskilled labor.