Advertisement

Industry leader defends 'unfit' young job trainees

DDP/The Local
DDP/The Local - [email protected]
Industry leader defends 'unfit' young job trainees
Photo: DPA

A leading advocate of skilled labourers came to the defence of young people on Monday following recent studies that have up to half of them “unfit” for job training.

Advertisement

“The young people of today are no worse than before, even if they are often not properly prepared when they finish school,” German Confederation of Skilled Crafts (ZDH) president Otto Kentzler told daily Passauer Neue Presse. “Those who have fun with their training and give it their all will reach their goals even with poor report cards.”

According to a recent study of 15,000 companies by the German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (DIHK), every fifth student leaving school is not prepared to begin job training.

Weak points included poor German and math skills, in addition to a lack of discipline and an inability to handle stress.

Many parents are apparently not passing on competencies such as punctuality and motivation, DIHK leader Martin Wansleben said when he presented the study last week.

Meanwhile in March the Federal Labour Ministry's Berufsbildungsberichts 2010, or “Career Training Report 2010,” found that some 47.3 percent of young people had not been properly educated between 2005 and 2008.

Almost half of Germany’s young adults are “not fit for training” and must complete remedial programmes before they can find an apprenticeship, the government report said.

But the ZDH’s Kentzler told the Passauer Neue Presse that many young people were being failed by the system.

In particular, young immigrants face “huge political and societal failures,” he said.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also