Immediately before the Bundestag’s final vote on reshaping Germany’s citizen’s‑income scheme into a new basic security system, the German Social Association (SoVD) issued strong criticism of the draft legislation.
Chairwoman of the SoVD board, Michaela Engelmeier, told the Funke Media Group newspapers that the new basic security has numerous shortcomings, with housing costs being the most glaring issue.
She also warned that the essential tool for re‑entering the workforce-qualifications-would be relegated behind job placement in any role. Engelmeier fears the phrase “Demand before promoting” will become the guiding principle in job centres.
Moreover, she argued that qualification programmes should only be offered in exceptional circumstances and only to people under 30, a policy she sees as plainly age‑discriminatory. The chairwoman further highlighted that the protection of vulnerable groups is inadequate due to a range of tightening measures.
“In total, we protest that the vast majority of legitimate recipients will now be held responsible for the misconduct of less than one percent. The new basic security essentially punishes everyone with one big bucket of reprimand” Engelmeier concluded.
