Jobcoach24+: Help against a shortage of skilled workers - this is how you get started!

Jobcoach24+: Help against a shortage of skilled workers - this is how you get started!

On February 11, 2025, Germany looks at the ongoing challenges in the field of social security and integration of job seekers. The introduction of the citizens' allowance on January 1, 2023 has brought about fundamental changes in social legislation. This replaced the previous Hartz IV system and the goal of strengthening the welfare state. But despite this reform, the balance sheet appears mixed after over a year.

The lack of work and skilled workers In numerous industries, urgency increases the job seeking seekers into the labor market effectively. Despite the improvements intended by the citizens' allowance, the proportion of fundamental security recipients has dropped to a historical low of 20.3%, the lowest level since 2007. This indicates that the citizen benefit does not act as a panacea to combat unemployment. The number of employable citizens' gates rose to a maximum of over 4 million in April 2024, which represents an increase of 1.82 % compared to the previous year.

full support from job coaches

In order to better respond to the needs of citizen gates, the Jobcoach24+ project was launched in May 2024. This program offers individual and comprehensive support for job -seeking citizens' money. Job coaches not only help with applications, but also with the search for internships, qualification measures and living opportunities. An example of the success of this project is Mazgin Ozman from Syria, which by supporting Dr. Hanan Hashem received an internship in the emergency services.

Jobcoach24+ is one of 23 regional projects in Rhineland-Palatinate, which is financed by the country and local job centers. The initiative pursues the goal of bringing job seekers together with companies and filling vacancies. These approaches could be crucial to counteract the negative trends on the labor market, especially in view of the current challenges such as an increase in unemployment.

Review of the reform and critical voices

The citizens' reform brought a number of new regulations to increase the basic security and to defuse sanction practice. However, critics argue that despite these improvements, central goals of the reform have not been achieved. The integration of job seekers into the job market has broken down, and the number of job recordings of unemployed basic security recipients has dropped by almost 6 %. One reason for this could be the temporary lifting of sanctions before the introduction of the citizens' allowance, which may result in fewer people search for activity.

The federal government has now tightened the sanctions, which increases the probability that basic security recipients accept jobs, but also raises concerns about the quality of employment. Experts like Enzo Weber from IAB warn of a 'Mismatch' in qualifications and emphasize that the economic down and other factors make it difficult to mediate. The changeover to the citizens' allowance has also led to less control against undeclared work and stagnated the inclusion of training measures.

While the reform actually aimed to modernize the welfare state, there are signs that the trust of many citizens disappears into the system. Despite the increase in the citizens' allowance on January 1, 2024, to support families, it remains to be seen whether these measures will create the urgently needed incentives to work. Many are curious to see how the situation will develop in the coming year and what measures will be taken to address the prevailing challenges.