The unequal treatment of older and younger people in the workplace
For young career starters, a decently remunerated full-time job is more the exception than the rule. "Generation Internship" are often expected to work for free, often for many years, before they can get a professional job. Young people are now treated as second-class workers. More than half of young employees are engaged in poorly paid, precarious work. Temporary agency work has almost doubled among young employees. Every second new hire is hired based on a short-term contract. Only 1 in 3 young people who do complete an internship are then taken on for an indefinite period. Young workers also have less legal protection against dismissals and are dismissed more quickly. Young people are far more at risk of poverty than older people and less well looked-after by the welfare state.
1
Exploitative short-term employment must be prohibited
Subcontracted labour, service contracts and mini-jobs must be fair.
2
The minimum wage must protect young people from poverty and exploitation
There must be no minimum age for the minimum wage.
3
Legal and trade union protections against unfair dismissal must also apply to younger people
Ensuring that younger workers receive the same unfair dismissal safeguards as their older counterparts.
4
Vocational training must be strengthened
Strengthening training programs to enhance career readiness for a skilled workforce.
5
Pay must not be based on age
Starting salaries have to be raised, paid for by smaller pay rises for older people.
6
Job centres sanctioning young people more harshly must end
Job centres should stop imposing disproportionately harsh sanctions on young people.
7
Age based discrimination must be explicitly prohibited in the Basic Law (Grundgesetz)
This ensures that individuals of all ages are guaranteed equal rights and protection under the law.
8
The workplace must be adapted to accommodate all age groups
With demographic shifts and an ageing population, it is crucial to reconsider how to adapt the world of work to accommodate all age groups effectively.
9
More investment in education and training to deal with demographic change
Young people need to take centre stage.