Jobs unsustainable if German changes renewables laws

There are fears for jobs at German manufacturing and industrial firms, after the German government suggested it may drop subsidies for green energy use.
Wed, 13 Nov 2013There are fears for jobs at German manufacturing and industrial firms, after the German government suggested it may drop subsidies for green energy use.

According to the Financial Times yesterday (12 November), the government is considering the removal of some of the €2.3bn (£1.9bn) of subsidies that have shielded companies from the cost of the country’s move to greener energy sources, known in Germany as ‘Energiewende’.

This raises the costs for businesses using large amounts of energy, such as manufacturers, and also raises questions for firms producing renewable power.

Kurt Bock, chief executive officer of chemicals firm BASF, tells Der Spiegel: “We need to decide, do we want to secure jobs or do we want a so-called fair burden sharing?”

Jack Shadwell, business manager at energy recruiter Earthstaff, tells recruiter.co.uk that if effective, the cuts “can’t help but have an impact on jobs”.

But Shadwell says that renewables firms and power companies as a whole in the country “are not only currently actively recruiting for large developments, but have projects in the pipeline that will no doubt create jobs in the coming years”.

And a spokesperson for Staffgroup, Earthstaff’s parent firm and an entrant on this year's HOT 100 list of the UK's most profitable recruiters, sponsored by Flo Software Systems and supported by RBS, tells us that despite forecasted job losses, the company is “seeing a positive job outlook in automotive sector in Germany, as well as huge demand for IT developers in Berlin”.

Last month, global energy recruiter Spencer Ogden said its new office in Germany was partly prompted out of demand created by Energiewende. No one from the firm was available to comment.

City of York Trading acquires recruiter Williams + Anthony

City of York Trading (CYT) has acquired Williams + Anthony, a York-based boutique recruitment agency that specialises in pre-construction appointments, including engineers and surveying.

Contracts 21 February 2024

Granger Reis appoints Dargan to lead new digital infrastructure practice

International executive search firm Granger Reis has appointed Steve Dargan to lead its new digital infrastructure (DI) practice.

People 13 February 2024

APPOINTMENTS: 15-19 JANUARY 2024

This week’s appointments include: Acorn by Synergie, Ciphr, Innovate Talent, Nash Squared, Realm Recruit, TaskMaster Public Sector, VIQU

People 15 January 2024

Sheffield Haworth marks ‘new chapter’ with leadership promotions

Sheffield Haworth, a global consultancy in people and transformational change, has announced a series of strategic management appointments as the company positions itself for future growth.

People 8 January 2024
Top