Fewer Restrictions

At a two-day retreat at Meseberg Palace north of Berlin, the German coalition government has agreed to develop a comprehensive plan that would make it significantly easier for qualified foreign workers to get a job in Germany.

Sources close to the government now said that, in the short term, electrical and mechanic engineers from the 12 newer EU member states could be allowed to start working in Germany as early as Oct. 1 without having to apply for a work permit.

Industry representatives welcomed the government's decision to open up parts of the labor market.

"It's a good thing that the government in Meseberg decided to implement not only short-term measures, but also to develop a master plan that's a bit more medium-term oriented," said Achim Dercks, deputy chief executive of the German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK).

Comprehensive plan

The plan -- which will be developed jointly by the ministries of labor and education over the next few months -- will also address the issue of reducing the minimum wage requirement for foreign workers, which is currently set at 85,000 euros ($115,000) per year.

This issue has been a thorn in the eye of German employers who have for years complained of a lack of qualified professionals in critical hi-tech sectors, warning that it could seriously undermine the country's competitiveness in an increasingly globalized world.

German Education Minister Annette Schavan previously suggested that the wage requirement should be lowered to between 40,000 and 60,000 euros.

Additionally, foreign students who complete a course of study at a German university will be able to work without hurdles for three years after graduation.

The government agreed that, in the long term, targeted immigration was "necessary and desirable," especially in view of Germany's increasingly ageing population. It also stressed, however, that exhausting the potential of the domestic German labor market was also a priority that could be achieved by training and educating the unemployed.

Fundamental rights

The free movement of labor is one of the most fundamental rights guaranteed to all EU citizens, but, in reality, not all EU citizens are born equal. With an eastward expansion of the union, transitional measures were introduced to protect national labor markets.

Germany -- having struggled itself with unemployment for years -- was one of the few EU nations which required that citizens from the new member states apply for work permits.

Work permits were granted only in those cases in which it could be proved that no qualified German workers could be found for the given position.