Around six years ago, hundreds of thousands of refugees arrived in Germany. From the very start, the REWE Group has supported their integration in the world of work and society. Ibrahim Dourra Maiga, HR Integration Coordinator for REWE Region South, reports on the successes and challenges.
Mr Maiga, labour market experts report that we’ve made good progress with the integration of migrants but that it’s going to take quite some time yet and further targeted support. What’s the situation at REWE?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: I would say that REWE has also made excellent progress with integration. Our integration initiative KIMAT supports people with a history of migration to become better integrated into the labour market and promotes intercultural coexistence.
What does that look like in specifically?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: We offer support to accompany apprenticeships, exam preparation courses and sponsorship programmes to help migrants navigate the labour market. We also have social networking partners who assist migrants with everyday challenges like finding a place to live or financial matters. This helps the migrants feel like they belong at REWE and reduces employee turnover. In the past year alone, REWE Region South has hired 86 migrants, of whom 77 are completing apprenticeships, three are in an introductory training programme and three are regular hires. The remaining three are employed under our REWE Kombi qualification programme.
Migrants’ job applications were often unsuccessful due to a lack of German language skills. Is that still an issue?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: Both the quantity and the quality of applications have improved considerably. This past year, 321 migrants applied for apprenticeships. In 2019, that number was just 259. Increasingly, these applications include candidates with good to excellent German skills at B2 to C1 level. We are also receiving increasing refugee applications for our trainee programme for high school leavers with the ’Abitur’ certification. Of course, it’s often difficult to get school leaving certificates from outside Germany recognised.
But back to language skills: deficits in everyday German have largely been overcome. Now, our focus is more on explaining specialised terminology relating to retail and the REWE world and improving written skills. And we’re making good progress there. Some of our stores have become German language learning sites thanks to the in-store employees’ commitment to overcoming language barriers.
Potential employers or trainers might be interested to know what the current legal situation is with regard to migrants and working?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: Persons with a temporary suspension of removal (“Geduldete”) and asylum seekers from safe countries of origin are not permitted to work in Germany, even if they are a good fit for an apprenticeship. Besides the EU member states, safe countries include Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ghana, Kosovo, Macedonia, the former Republic of Yugoslavia, Montenegro and Senegal. For the other target group, “Geduldete” and persons coming from unsafe countries who have been granted permission to remain, we apply for a tolerated stay permit for vocational training (“Ausbildungsduldung”) under the 3+2 rule.
What is the 3+2 rule?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: If, after completing three years of training, a migrant is granted a temporary suspension of removal instead of refugee status, they can nevertheless work in Germany for at least two years. However, the work permit will be revoked if the asylum application is denied or if the migrant fails to cooperate with the identification process. Last year, 44 apprentices were able to start with us in Region South under this rule. Unfortunately, three other applicants were not granted a vocational training permit.
When asylum applications are rejected, does that result in increased employee turnover?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: Employee turnover is a gauge of the success of our integration efforts. When migrants leave REWE, it is usually because they’ve received notice that they are to be deported. In such cases, we’re often able to intervene and prevent their deportation. But I also know of two cases in which we were not able to prevent deportation.
One last question: What role do cultural differences play in integration?
Ibrahim Dourra Maiga: They can sometimes be challenging to deal with. For example, when it’s about communications between migrants and their supervisors or the handling of pork. We try to overcome these challenges within our KIMAT programme; for instance, through dedicated workshops and mentoring programmes. One tool that we hope will be useful for raising awareness and understanding of cultural diversity is the REWE Diversity Cookbook, which is currently in the planning stage. The cookbook will showcase our international employees and their favourite recipes.
