The German Poor

Just to give you an idea

Published on June 26, 2009 By Leauki In International

This is what the unemployed in Germany receive for free from the state, as per Wikipedia.

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartz_4

"Unemployed" are here those who haven't worked in years. These are the numbers for able-bodied young (20 to 40) people in Euros.

Individual: 351 per month

Married couple: 316 per individual per month

Child (14 and older): 281 per child per month

Child (younger than 14): 211 per child per month

Also: between 42 and 126 per month according to children's age

The "poor" also receive money to pay for rent and heating. This is according to where they live. If they live in an expensive city, they get more money. They don't have to move to less desirable locations.

For Berlin, they receive the following to pay for rent and heating.

Individual: 360 per month

Couple: 444 per month

This covers rent and heating for two-room flats in Berlin.

I assume it goes without saying that they also receive free health insurance.

A married couple with one child, living in Berlin in a flat with two bed rooms, bathtub and kitchen, both "unable" to find work and both not known for donating their time voluntarily to help, say, a local church, hence receive, per month, 1357 euros and free health insurance.

And there are people on the streets protesting against this, because it's not enough and doesn't allow for a decent life. For some reason, those unemployed do not move to locations (or countries) where workers are needed. Here in Dublin over the last few years we have had literally tens of thousands of Poles and other eastern Europeans, but comparatvely few Germans.

Comments

Leauki

on Jun 26, 2009

...

Nitro Cruiser

on Jul 05, 2009

Sounds like a good racket, why move? The current US administration would probably kill to have this in place here. Their voter base would be secure.

cactoblasta

on Jul 06, 2009

That's not that much really. When I was studying I could have got $320 a fortnight, so that's $640 a month. I also had free healthcare if I wanted it (I paid for private cover). Instead I worked about 20 hours a week, which made austudy a waste of effort (there are strict reporting requirements).

A room in a reasonable sharehouse at the time was about $100 a week, which left 240 a month for food, clothes, transportation - a bus pass was about $50 a month.

Unemployment benefits worked out about the same as Austudy, but you had to be able to prove you were actively seeking work, and you had to do courses and the like to improve your employability.

Germany really isn't that unusual. The kind of people who are only unemployment benefits for a long time are almost certainly unemployable to begin with.

Leauki

on Jul 13, 2009

Turns out the German "poor" also get their furniture from the government, i.e. other people pay for it: fridge, bed, table, chairs, comfy chair.

They only have to use "their" money to pay for replacing furniture if they break it. Otherwise the furniture costs are extra benefits.

cactoblasta

on Jul 13, 2009

They only have to use "their" money to pay for replacing furniture if they break it. Otherwise the furniture costs are extra benefits.

Is this as part of Government housing? Because that's also reasonably common in the first world. I'm surprised they don't have furnished government apartments in Ireland, too.

Leauki

on Jul 14, 2009

Is this as part of Government housing?

No, it's part of housing paid for by government. They rent like everybody else, but government pays for it, and for their furniture.

Because that's also reasonably common in the first world. I'm surprised they don't have furnished government apartments in Ireland, too.

They do. But if you are poor you don't get to choose to live somewhere else for free if you don't like council houses.

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