madkins
Registered
All civilization has from time to time become a thin crust over a volcano of revolution.
Havelock Ellis(1859-1939)
BBC.-Europe
Last Updated: Monday, 3 January, 2005, 11:16 GMT
Germans plan mass welfare rallies
Many east Germans are disappointed with reunification
Protesters plan to take to the streets in more than 50 German towns and cities on Monday as cuts in unemployment benefit come into effect.
The labour reforms known as "Hartz IV" are aimed at cutting the number of jobless - currently 10.8% of the workforce - and boosting the economy.
The protesters - who also held big rallies last year - want to force government labour offices to shut down.
Several offices have hired security guards in case of violence.
Some demonstrators forced their way into a labour office in Leipzig, eastern Germany, the AFP news agency reports
.
'More jobs'
Hartz IV is expected to hit the long-term unemploy
ed and the 2.7 million people who the federal labour agency says have used up their benefits and now receive only minimum welfare payments.
Leipzig and other east German cities last year saw big anti-Hartz IV demonstrations on Mondays - reminiscent of the rallies that brought down the former communist regime in 1989. Unemployment rates are generally higher across east Germany than in western regions.
The launch of Hartz IV on 1 January was hampered by computer glitches.
The federal statistics office reported however that employment rose by 128,000, or 0.3%, to 38.4 million in 2004 - the first increase in three years.
Unemployed Germans have been encouraged to take "one-euro jobs" - wages of one to two euros per hour on top of jobless benefit for public service work, such as helping in nursing homes or rubbish collection.
Hartz IV is the biggest overhaul of Germany's wel
fare system in decades.
Skerryvore,
madkins
Havelock Ellis(1859-1939)
BBC.-Europe
Last Updated: Monday, 3 January, 2005, 11:16 GMT
Germans plan mass welfare rallies
Many east Germans are disappointed with reunification
Protesters plan to take to the streets in more than 50 German towns and cities on Monday as cuts in unemployment benefit come into effect.
The labour reforms known as "Hartz IV" are aimed at cutting the number of jobless - currently 10.8% of the workforce - and boosting the economy.
The protesters - who also held big rallies last year - want to force government labour offices to shut down.
Several offices have hired security guards in case of violence.
Some demonstrators forced their way into a labour office in Leipzig, eastern Germany, the AFP news agency reports
.
'More jobs'
Hartz IV is expected to hit the long-term unemploy
ed and the 2.7 million people who the federal labour agency says have used up their benefits and now receive only minimum welfare payments.
Leipzig and other east German cities last year saw big anti-Hartz IV demonstrations on Mondays - reminiscent of the rallies that brought down the former communist regime in 1989. Unemployment rates are generally higher across east Germany than in western regions.
The launch of Hartz IV on 1 January was hampered by computer glitches.
The federal statistics office reported however that employment rose by 128,000, or 0.3%, to 38.4 million in 2004 - the first increase in three years.
Unemployed Germans have been encouraged to take "one-euro jobs" - wages of one to two euros per hour on top of jobless benefit for public service work, such as helping in nursing homes or rubbish collection.
Hartz IV is the biggest overhaul of Germany's wel
fare system in decades.
Skerryvore,
madkins