Overview
- The education ministry has halted the roughly €1,250 gross monthly Landprämie for almost all primary-school trainees, keeping it only in the Bautzen and Görlitz districts due to ongoing shortages.
- Trainees still receive a base pay of €1,795.10 gross per month, and the bonus continues for other school types except in Dresden, Leipzig and nearby areas.
- Education Minister Conrad Clemens says the decision was communicated in late October 2025 and that trainees could switch placements, a claim trainees dispute as lacking transparency.
- Trainees report immediate financial strain and have issued an open letter to Clemens and Patrick Schreiber seeking a transitional arrangement, with protests organized and support from the GEW.
- The ministry cites stable graduate numbers, fewer incoming primary pupils and the need to steer hires to real shortages, asserting Bedarfsregion trainee numbers have doubled.