European Job Days 2011, Aveiro 21./22.

October 2011

Living and Working in Germany

Overview
Facts about Germany
Labour Market Access to Labour Market

Working conditions
Wages Social Security Taxes

Finding a job
How to find job offers How to apply

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 2

Facts about Germany

Labour market Access to labour market

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Kapitel 1 / 5

Seite 3

Facts about Germany

Surface Area: 357.000 km Population: 82.6 Million (2008) 680.000 Immigrants (2007) Capital Berlin 16 Federal States

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 4

Labour Market
Unemployment Figures September 2011 2.795.570 (2010: -230.774) 6,6 % (2010: -0,6 %) Western States: 5,7 % Eastern States: 10,4 % Vacancies 467.385 (2010: +28,3 %)
90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 1. Qrtl. 2. Qrtl. 3. Qrtl. 4. Qrtl. Ost West Nord

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 5

Labour Market Shortages of personnel in following professions:

Medical Doctors Nurses Engineers
Mechanical Engineers Electrical Engineers

Metal Workers, Electricians and other selected professions Hotel and Catering Specialists (Especially Seasonal!)
Waiters, waitresses Cooks

Seasonal: Workers in Agriculture

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 6

Labour Market Present surpluses in following professions:

Architects and Civil Engineers Bachelors/Masters of Arts and Social Sciences Geographers and Geologists Biologists, Chemists Graduates in Business Studies Unskilled Workers

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 7

Access to labour market

Free access to labour market for citizens of EU/EEA member states (except Bulgaria and Romania) on the basis of free European Labour Movement. Citizens of all other states need a work permit

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 8

Working conditions
Wages Social security Taxes

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 9

Wages
There is no regulation about minimum wages
Exceptions for special branches

In general, wages depends on collective agreements which exists for most sectors Regional differences (East-West/North-South) When employer is talking about the salary, he will talk about the gros salary the net salary is lower more information: www.lohnspiegel.de
Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit Seite 10

Social Security
5 pillars of the Social Security System: rates: Health Insurance Unemployment Insurance Pension Long-Term Care Insurance Work Accident Insurance 15,5 % 3,0 % 19,9 % 1,95 % paid by employer

Employer has to register the employee in the social insurance when he starts working and hand out a confirmation For detailed information (in English and French) see www.deutsche-sozialversicherung.de
Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit Seite 11

Taxes

Income tax Church tax Solidarity tax

14 % - 42 % 8%- 9% 5,5 % of income tax of income tax

Automatically deducted from employees salary Pre-/After-Tax-Calculator: http://www.focus.de/finanzen/steuern/gehaltsplaner/brutto-nettorechner-was-2011-vom-gehalt-uebrig-bleibt_aid_28104.html

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 12

Finding a job
How to find job offers How to apply

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 13

How to find a job

Internet
German Federal Employment Agency www.arbeitsagentur.de > Jobbrse Company websites Specific websites for different branches (see www.ba-auslandsvermittlung.de)

Newspapers

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 14

The Jobbrse of German Employment Service

choose language Register/ Log in

Quicksearch/ advanded Search

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 15

Application
Basic rules
Cover letter: short and precise No grammar and spelling mistakes Date of birth to be mentioned in CV Photo in CV Including copies of diplomas and letters of reference from employers

Help for application process is offered:

www.bewerbungsdschungel.de www.europass-info.de (CV)

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 16

Applying for a Position

What do German employers expect from you? (Very) Good German language skills Often English skills Professional experience in the relevant sector Motivation Able to work in a team

Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit

Seite 17

Contact
Bundesagentur fr Arbeit Zentrale Auslands- und Fachvermittlung Villemombler Str. 76 53123 Bonn Germany Phone: +49 228 713 1313 e-mail: ZAV-Bonn@arbeitsagentur.de www.zav.de/arbeiten-in-deutschland
Living & working in Germany, October 2011 Bundesagentur fr Arbeit Seite 18