Women told, 'Work in brothel, or else'
A provision in the German welfare system is forcing out-of-work women to chose between taking jobs in the sex industry or losing their unemployment benefits.
Once one of the most generous systems in Europe, Germany's unemployment program has been reformed to require those out of work to take jobs for which they are qualified, or lose benefits. In the case of women, females below the age of 55 who have been out of work for a year or more must take any available job offered.
The full legalization of prostitution two years ago ? with brothel owners now paying taxes and employee health insurance ? has created an awkward situation at German job centers where employers can access the official government database of those seeking work, reports the London Telegraph.
One 25-year-old waitress, an unemployed information technology professional, had indicated a willingness to work in a bar at night and had past experience working in a cafe. A potential employer, finding her profile promising, contacted the job center about hiring her. Only after the young woman called to inquire about the job did she learn the employer was a brothel. When she refused the position, she was threatened with cuts to her unemployment benefits.
Centers that do not penalize job seekers who refuse offered positions are subject to lawsuits by the employers.
"There is now nothing in the law to stop women from being sent into the sex industry," says Merchthild Garweg, a Hamburg lawyer. "The new regulations say that working in the sex industry is not immoral any more, and so jobs cannot be turned down without a risk to benefits."
Garweg notes that women who have past experience as telemarketers or call service workers have been offered positions with telephone-sex services. New laws permit sex-oriented employers to advertise in the job centers and provide for the suing of job centers that refuse to accept their ads.
A provision in the German welfare system is forcing out-of-work women to chose between taking jobs in the sex industry or losing their unemployment benefits.
Once one of the most generous systems in Europe, Germany's unemployment program has been reformed to require those out of work to take jobs for which they are qualified, or lose benefits. In the case of women, females below the age of 55 who have been out of work for a year or more must take any available job offered.
The full legalization of prostitution two years ago ? with brothel owners now paying taxes and employee health insurance ? has created an awkward situation at German job centers where employers can access the official government database of those seeking work, reports the London Telegraph.
One 25-year-old waitress, an unemployed information technology professional, had indicated a willingness to work in a bar at night and had past experience working in a cafe. A potential employer, finding her profile promising, contacted the job center about hiring her. Only after the young woman called to inquire about the job did she learn the employer was a brothel. When she refused the position, she was threatened with cuts to her unemployment benefits.
Centers that do not penalize job seekers who refuse offered positions are subject to lawsuits by the employers.
"There is now nothing in the law to stop women from being sent into the sex industry," says Merchthild Garweg, a Hamburg lawyer. "The new regulations say that working in the sex industry is not immoral any more, and so jobs cannot be turned down without a risk to benefits."
Garweg notes that women who have past experience as telemarketers or call service workers have been offered positions with telephone-sex services. New laws permit sex-oriented employers to advertise in the job centers and provide for the suing of job centers that refuse to accept their ads.
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