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Saale-Orla-Kreis Reports Doubling of Job Placements After Mandated Work for Asylum Seekers

County leaders attribute the gains to community assignments under Article 5 paying about €0.80 an hour.

Overview

  • Since February 2024, 228 asylum seekers were assigned low-paid community roles, and 90 moved into social‑insurance full‑time jobs, according to the administration.
  • The reported placement rate into the first labor market increased from 20% in 2024 to 40% in 2025.
  • Participants typically work about four hours per day, up to 25 hours weekly, on tasks such as green‑space upkeep, snow shoveling, food‑bank bagging and playground repairs.
  • Officials imposed benefit cuts on 20 people who refused to participate, reducing monthly payments from €441 to €232, and seven individuals left the district or could not be traced.
  • Other counties report mixed results after adopting similar measures, with Greiz citing 64 hires from 187 participants and an unsuccessful court challenge to a sanction, while the Saale‑Orla‑Kreis leader also notes a rise in voluntary returns from 30 in 2023 to 90 in 2025.