Germany
(Last updated April 2008) |
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Introduction and OverviewThe post-war German settlement was based on the idea of a 'social state', sometimes rendered as a 'social market economy.' The central principle is that social welfare would most effectively be furthered through economic development, and that the structure of social benefits should reinforce this. A corporatist structure that was first introduced by Bismarck continues to influence the development of the German economy and the system of social protection. Social benefits in Germany are closely associated with one's position in the labor market; are largely earnings-related; and those lacking work histories may not be fully covered. There is also a strong emphasis on the principle of subsidiarity. This principle is taken in Germany to mean both that services should be decentralized or independently managed, and that the level of state intervention should be residual - that is, limited to circumstances which are not adequately covered in other ways. Social insurance, for example, which covers the costs of health care, some social care, and much of the income maintenance system, is managed by a system of independent funds. Germany has a constitutional commitment to the family and has a federal ministry that includes "family" among its responsibilities and thus would be listed among countries with explicit family policy. The federal authorities regularly convene groups of scientists who produce "youth" (really children and adolescents) and family reports, all by parliamentary mandate. Some states and communes also publish family reports, covering children and youth as well. Nonetheless, while there are explicit family policies in most social policy domains, there is no one overall integrated policy and no institutionalized rigorous system of implementation. German family policies, historically, have been designed to encourage and sustain the traditional, two-parent family with an "at-home" mother caring for the children. Indeed, a Danish research group has described the German welfare state as "the male breadwinner model…" (Abrahamson, 1999). In the past, this meant large families, but in more recent years there has been interest in two-child families, "large" in current context. In the last few years, there has been considerable public concern regarding Germany's low fertility rate, 1.37 in 2004, slightly below the EU-25 average of 1.5 (Eurostat, 2005 (estimated data)) . According to a German family policy expert, the media sensationalized "the figures as a drastic population decline entailing considerable disadvantages for Germany as an industrial location." (Bien, 2002). Young people, especially young women, were accused of endangering the survival of Germany, but these allegations soon gave way to more realistic responses. Public policies are now focused on increasing the immigration of highly skilled immigrants, increasing the labor force participation of women, and enacting policies to help reconcile work and family responsibilities. The growing concern around low birth rates contributed to a reevaluation of existing family policy in Germany, that, at least, initially has led to increased spending and an assessment of the best means to provide support to families. As in other industrialized European countries, there has been a shift in concern and resources from the elderly to the young. A 2002 study found that the share of young children in Germany now dependent on public transfers has increased 4-5 times, while the share of elderly receiving transfers has decreased (Bien, 2002). A study by the Kiel Institute of Economics found that German society finances about one-third of the costs of children. Germany's lagging economic growth and relatively high unemployment since 2001 have led to consensus about the need to increase flexibility in the labor market by weakening some protections and benefits. Various possible reforms to the health care, tax and pension systems have been on the table (Stokes, 2003). In January 2007, a major policy shift occurred with significant revisions of the childrearing benefit and parental leave law. An earnings-related income replacement benefit was substituted for the existing flat rate, the leave duration was reduced and a portion of the leave was reserved for fathers. These and related changes are intended to encourage the earlier return of women to the labor market in order to reduce gender divisions, to increase paternal involvement in childrearing, and to move the country toward greater use of early childhood care and improvements in early childhood education (Erler and Erler, 2007). The government has also set a goal of persuading 1,000 companies to institute family-friendly employment policies. Approximately 9 percent of the population holds citizenship from another country. Turkish immigrants make up the largest group, with 1.88 million people, arising from the recruitment between 1955 and 1973 of foreign labor. The overall number of people from migrant families, however, amounts to more than 18 percent of the country’s population. Social and economic equality continue to elude many, as well as their children and grandchildren, and there is substantial disagreement nationwide as to how to balance integration and cultural autonomy. A new Immigration Law enacted in 2007 raised the minimum age for persons emigrating to join a spouse in Germany, and requires demonstration of basic German language competency for such persons. Under the National Integration Plan adopted in 2007, national, state and local governments, migrant organizations, trade and industry, sports associations, foundations and the media will implement concrete measures to promote, among other goals, German language competence, improved educational and labor market opportunities, gender equality, civic participation, and multicultural acceptance and sensitivity (Federal Press and Information Office, 2007). |
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HighlightsClick here to view or print country highlights in pdf format. |
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Government AgenciesA number of federal ministries are involved in aspects of child, youth, and family policies:
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Demographic and Other Social TrendsThe largest country in the EU, Germany has a population of 82.5 million, post-reunification in 1990. Its under-15s constitute 15.3 percent of the whole, below both EU and OECD averages (OECD, 2007). Two decades of low total fertility rates has created concern. Only Italy and Spain have lower rates, but, unlike Germany, their declines are recent. According to the most recent federal statistical profile of families in Germany, over 80 percent of German children live with both their natural parents, who are likely to be married to each other (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2004). Though higher than other EU countries, the proportion of children living with married couples has declined in recent decades, as well as re-marriage rates. According to the 2006 microcensus, the number of single parents and cohabiting couples with children rose by 30 percent over the previous decade, although married couples with children still comprised nearly three-quarters of all German families (DESTATIS, 2007).. As of 2004, parents living in what was formerly East Germany were more likely to have children outside of marriage and have only one child. The 2006 microcensus also revealed that 42% of all families with children in East Germany were single parent or cohabiting couple families. Four out of ten children in East Germany had parents who were not married. Germany has one of the lowest percentages of family households with children in the entire EU (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2004). A comparative study of child benefit packages reported that, of all German lone mothers in 1999, 39 percent were divorced, 22 percent widowed, 13 percent separated, and 27 percent unmarried (Bradshaw & Finch, 2002). Cohabitation has been increasing rapidly in Germany. In 2000, approximately three-quarters of all East German couples where the female partner was under the age of 25, and 43 percent of all such West German couples, were cohabiting. In cases where the female partner was aged between 25 and 29, cohabitation rates were 47 percent and 26 percent, respectively (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2004). Pre-unification, West German female labor force participation was mid-range for the EU. Currently, while behind all Nordic countries, it exceeds the EU and OECD averages of 60.2 percent. Female labor force participation rates fall with the presence of children (Erler and Erler, 2007). In 2005,67.4 percent of all German women were employed; of these, about half worked part-time (Erler and Erler, 2007). Women employed part-time comprised 81.4 percent of total part-time employment. Germany has one of the highest female part-time employment rates among OECD countries (average 72.1 percent) but just above the EU average of 78.1 percent (OECD, 2006). In 2000, 63 percent of married mothers worked outside the home. This is a major increase in employment for married mothers over the past 29 years. Data from 2001 show that 62 percent of lone mothers worked outside the home (OECD, 2007b). In 2005, among women whose youngest child was less than 2 years old, 36.1 percent were in paid work; that percentage rose to 54.8 percent when the age of the youngest child was between 3 and 5, and to 62.7 percent when the age of the youngest child was between 6 and 16 (OECD, 2007b). |
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Social ProtectionSince World War II, a series of legal enactments relating to individual rights and public social guarantees, and the evolution of a pattern of bargaining and cooperation by the “social partners” (employers, labor, government) have created a unique model in Germany, based on a conservative, capitalist, private property, market economy. Two German scholars sum-up as follows: "The broad consensus on the social market economy combining competitive markets, social partnership in industrial relations and the welfare state [has] held for more than fifty years" (Bahle and Rothenbacher, 1998, p.37). As one of Europe’s active welfare states, Germany spent nearly 27.3 percent of its GDP in 2003 on social protection, which is above the EU average of 23.9 percent. In the last 18 years, Germany has had to contend with both the costs of reunification and the problems posed by the unemployment shocks of the 1990s. But its general economic situation has permitted protection of family policy goals. Germany allocated 10.5 percent of social expenditures to family and child benefits in 2004, notably above the EU average of 7.8 percent. Spending on cash benefits for families with children is relatively high, 3 percent of GDP in 2003 on family cash benefits, compared to an OECD average of 2.4 percent. Spending on services, however, is relatively low and is largely spent on preschool for children aged 3-6. Nonetheless, although not the single benefit or program leader in most areas, Germany remains among the more generous countries in social protections generally. Germany ranks 10th in child poverty, using the European relative measure (50 percent median income. The German rate is 10.7 percent. German lone parent families had a 38 percent child poverty rate in 2001; about half of all children in lone parent families were poor in 1994. German federalism and subsidiarity channel federal enactments (the center of policy development and enactment) to the states, which develop implementation plans, and to the local level for delivery. The subsidiarity principle, a derivation from Catholic social thinking, stresses priority for local voluntary associations. Therefore government delivers few direct services (as contrasted with cash benefits) and the Catholic, protestant, Jewish, union-related, Red Cross and other non-denominational voluntary groups are regularly subsidized by the public treasury to close to 90 percent of their expenditures. Some 70 percent of institutions caring for children and youth are in the voluntary sector. The six major voluntary associations (working through 60,000 social service locations) come together in a loosely organized national coordinating body. The public considers it all part of public provision. In 2005 unemployment assistance and social assistance were merged under the “Hartz IV” reforms. As a result, a new tax-financed “Unemployment Benefit II” was established for the long-term unemployed, with lower, means-tested benefits and new requirements. It has been suggested that, as a result, the number of children requiring social assistance has increased. “Critics see this amalgamation as a cut in the welfare system that leaves many millions of people in Germany worse off. Proponents, on the other hand, argue that the reform makes it easier to put unemployed people into jobs.” (Goethe Institute, 2005). |
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Child, Youth and Family Policy RegimesMaternity, Paternity, Parental, and Family LeavesMaternity Leaves are paid, job-protected leaves for 14 weeks (6 weeks before childbirth) and continuation of all fringe benefit coverage without payment of contributions or taxes. The leave is mandatory for 8 weeks following childbirth, with variations for special circumstances. A female employee is entitled to a maternity benefit (Mutterschaftsgeld) equal to average net pay up to 13 Euros/day and an additional amount equal to the full wage (if higher) paid by the employer during the maternity leave. Persons in the statutory health insurance scheme are entitled to a benefit equal to their sickness benefit (paid sick leave) or a one-time childbirth allowance of 77 Euros. Female employees not insured by the federal government receive a one-time maternity allowance amounting to 210 Euros (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2007a). The 2007 reforms made significant changes in leave and other employment-related policies to support parents. Both mothers and fathers are entitled to take a three-year job-protected parental leave (Elternziet) and since 2001 can do so at the same time. Although the length of the leave was preserved, the duration of the paid component was reduced from two years to a standard 12 months, with an alternative of receiving decreased payments over a two-year period. Two months reserved for fathers may be added to the shorter leave period.. Both parents are eligible; however, mothers are the users overwhelmingly, with the proportion of fathers using their parental leave stagnating at 5 percent (MossErler and Erler, 2007). Parents who work for firms that have more than 15 employees have the option of working part-time during their parental leave, with the employer’s consent, for a maximum of 30 hours per week. Some states provide cash benefits during the third year, as well. Parents may postpone the third year of parental leave up until their child’s eighth birthday and may also collect unemployment benefits while receiving a child-rearing allowance. Also in 2007, the existing extended benefit following childbirth (a two-year flat rate, income-tested childrearing cash benefit) (Erziehungsgeld) was eliminated, for children born after January 1st, in favor of an earnings related benefit equal to 67 percent of wages. The benefit was renamed a Parental Allowance (Elterngeld). There is a guaranteed minimum monthly payment to all parents and a cap on the amount of individual benefit payments (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2007a). Working adults in a two-earner family also have the right to remain at home for up to 10 days per year to care for an ill child under age 12. Single mothers may remain at home for up to 20 days, per child. A family with several children may use up to 25 days (MossErler and Erler, 2007). The leave and policy regulations apply equally to cases of adoption. |
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Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC)There is good coverage for the 3-6 year olds in public and publicly subsidized preschools, but these are mostly half-day programs with very poor coverage for infants and toddlers or for children whose mothers work full time. However, national data often obscure major local differences, for example, in the lower provision of center-based places in the old, as compared to the new, Federal states (OECD, 2004). Another example is the almost universal use of full-day kindergarten in the new states (Secretariat, 2006). Since 1997, the government has guaranteed a place for the 3-6 year olds for three morning hours in a nursery school. In 2004, 90 percent were enrolled (OECD, 2004). Kindergartens, which are within the states’ jurisdiction, have shifted from being seen as unwanted intrusions into family life to being defined as the primary stage of education. But they are not adequately organized to provide care for the children of working mothers, since most children must go home for lunch. A strong streak in public opinion considers it wrong for infants and toddlers to be reared outside the home-unless theirs are "inadequate" families (Bertram, 2006). Participation of children under 3 in center-based childcare services in 2002 was 8.5 percent, compared to an OECD average of 23 percent (OECD, 2004b). The Day Care Expansion Act of 2005 is intended to create additional day care places by 2010 (Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, 2006). Increasing attention is being paid to educational goals for children under 3, including linguistic competence, particularly for children in migrant families (Secretariat, 2006). |
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Family and Child AllowancesCash benefits and tax exemptions were integrated into the family allowance (Kindergeld) system in the mid-1990s. The allowance consists, in part, of a child cash benefit, paid in the form of a tax benefit. It is viewed as a support to the entire community and as equalizing family burdens. These universal child benefits are the same amount for one, two and three children (154 Euros) and increase for each child thereafter (179 Euros). Benefits are available up to age 18, and may be extended to age 21 for unemployed youth and to age 25 if continuing education (reduced from 27 starting in 2007) with a phase-in for birth years 1980-82. There is no age limit for disabled youth unable to work. The benefit may also be claimed for foster children and for grandchildren. A supplementary income-tested child benefit (Kinderzuschlag) is provided for parents who are able to cover their own living expenses, but not their children’s, if the benefit would prevent the family from having to apply for social assistance for the children. The maximum benefit is 140 Euros per child and is paid for a maximum of 36 months. German social benefits are generous in the European context but are not among the leaders. |
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Child and Family Tax BenefitsA constitutional rule exempts from taxation parental income necessary to maintain a child at subsistence level. Accordingly, family allowances (3,648 Euros as of 2007) are not included as taxable income. In most cases, the child benefits are equal to the tax exemptions. When this is not the case, commonly with families with higher incomes, the higher benefit is taken into consideration in the following year’s tax computations. Also constitutionally based are income tax deductions for childcare and childrearing costs (Elterngeld) from birth to age 14, up to a maximum of 4,000 Euros per year, receivable by employed lone parents and dual wage-earning partners. All other parents may receive the tax relief for children aged 3 to 6. In addition, parents who receive one of the child tax allowances or credits and have a child living away from home and attending school or pursuing vocational training may receive an education tax exemption of 924 Euros annually per child. Additional educational support from public grants may be available to offset the cost of education. Single-parents may claim a tax credit if they receive one of the child-related tax benefits or cash allowances, currently 1,308 Euros per year. Income-splitting provisions in the tax code are valuable to two-parent single-earner families. The combined income of both parents is halved and the tax assessed on the halved income is doubled. In this way, the income tax rate is made less progressive (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2007a; Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, 2007). |
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Child SupportAll non-resident parents are obliged to pay child support. Single parents who do not receive support from the other parent are granted a maintenance advance from the government (Unterhaltsvorschuss). A court order is no longer necessary. Advance maintenance is paid for a maximum of 72 months until the child's 12th birthday. The payment is income-tested at a low level, but inadequate to support an unemployed single mother. One level of payment is for children up to 6 years old and a higher level for those 6-12 years old. |
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Other Child Conditioned Income TransfersSocial assistance is available to persons who are unable to support themselves and the type, form and level of assistance is determined according to an individual's special needs and circumstances. The program is administered locally. Expectant mothers who qualify may receive a 20 percent supplement to the standard rate beginning in the 12th week of pregnancy. Single-parents with a child age 6 or younger, or two children age 15 or younger, may receive a 40 percent supplement to the standard rate. A poor single-parent with four or more children is eligible for a 60 percent supplement. In order to compensate for one of the labor market disadvantages resulting from time devoted to child-rearing, the German government now credits mothers or fathers who spend up to 3 years at home in child rearing with a pension credit equal to up to 3 years of work at average wages. This applies to additional children as well. Five years of such credit assures a minimum pension for a parent with no labor force experience. The accrued pension rights of parents who, during the first ten years of the child’s life, earn a below-average salary due, for example, to part-time employment, is upgraded for the purpose of calculating pensions. In addition, there are child survivor benefits under the social security system, and under work injury (worker’s compensation) insurance. There are dependent child benefits under unemployment insurance and unemployment assistance. |
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Child and Adolescent HealthThere is coverage under a statutorily mandated insurance system, which includes 85 percent of the population. There is a strong program of preventive health care for children included and some localities continue an earlier program of post-childbirth home health visits by nurses or social workers. The infant mortality rate for 2004 was 4.1 percent, as compared to an OECD average of 5.7 percent (OECD, 2007c). All of this is subject to development and modification with gender-role changes, German adaptation to the market, the economic recovery and fall in employment in the late 1990s, and the results of current policy debates about immigration and asylum. |
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YouthClick here to view in pdf format a table on the Ages at which children are legally entitled to carry out a series of acts in the European Union. |
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HousingA 2001 reform modified the "accommodation allowance" (Wohngeld) to better serve the needs of families with children. Low-income households with children are now eligible to receive a more generous benefit that increases, in part, with the number of children in the family. Home ownership subsidies have also been reformed and are now more generous and focused on assisting families with children. The federal government is seeking to redevelop the principle of the extended family in a modern form by promoting the establishment of “Houses of Generations.” Services for the older generations will be linked with services for families with young children. Program models are targeted at rural areas and smaller towns (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, 2007b). |
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ReferencesAbrahamson, P. (1999). The male bread-winner model under change: The case of Germany towards the 21st century. Denmark: Roskilde University. Bahle, T. & Rothenbacher, F. (1998). Germany. In J. Ditch, H. Barnes, & J. Bradshaw (Eds.), Developments in national policies in 1996. (pp. 37-61). Brussels: European Commission. Bahle, T. & Rothenbacher, F. (1996). Germany. In J. Ditch, H. Barnes, & J. Bradshaw (Eds.), Developments in national policies in 1995. (pp.25-36). Brussels: European Commission. Bertram, H. (2006). Overview of Child Well-Being in Germany. UNICEF, Innocenti Working Paper 2006-02. Florence: Innocenti Research Centre. Baldwin, P. (1994). The politics of social solidarity. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Bleses, P. and Seelieb-Kaiser, M. (2004). The Dual Transformation of the German Welfare State. Houndmills: Plagrave Macmillan. Bien, W. (2002). The situation of families in Germany-2001. European Observatory on the Social Situation, Demography and Family, Retrieved from the World Wide Web, June 2002 at here. Bradshaw, J. and Finch, N. (2002). A Comparison of Child Benefit Packages in 22 Countries. UK: Department for Work and Pensions. Available at www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rrep174.asp Bradshaw, J. and Hatland, A. (2006). Social Policy, Employment and Family Change in Comparative Perspective. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Corak, M. et al. (2005). A portrait of child poverty in Germany. UNICEF, Innocenti Working Paper 2005-03. Florence: Innocenti Research Centre. DESTATIS. (2007). Press Release No. 481/2007-11-28. Share of alternative family forms higher in eastern than in western Germany. Erler, W. & Erler, D. (2007). Germany. In P. Moss & K. Wall (2007) (Eds.), International Review of Leave Policies and Related Research 2007. (pp. 157-172). London: Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. Eurostat (October 25, 2005). News Release 136/2005. Eurostat. (2007). Europe in Figures-Eurostat Yearbook 2006-07. Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth.(Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) (1999). Families in Germany - A statistical view. (Available from Ministry). Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) (2004). Families in Germany – Facts and Figures. Available at www.iesf.es/fot/Families-Germany-Facts-Figures-2004.pdf Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) (2006). Seventh Family Report (Summary). Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) (2007a). Overview of the Standard Benefits and Tax Concessions Relevant to Family Policy and the Amounts Involved in the Federal Republic of Germany. Available at here. Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) (2007b). Policy for the Future. Available at here. Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. (Federal Ministry of Labour) (2007). Social Security at a Glance. Available at here. Federal Press and Information Office (2007). The National Integration Plan. Available at here. Gutberlet, G. (1994). Social security in Germany. In N. Ploug & J. Kvist (Eds.), Recent trends in cash benefits in Europe. (pp. 85-102). Copenhagen: Danish National Institute of Social Research. Kahn, A.J. & Kamerman, S.B. (1994). Social policy and the under-3s: Six country case studies. New York: Columbia University School of Social Work. Kamerman, S.B. & Kahn, A.J. (1995). Starting right: How America neglects its youngest children and what we can do about it. New York: Oxford University Press. OECD. (2004). OECD Country Note: Early Childhood Education and Care Policy in the Federal Republic of Germany. Available at www.oecd.org/dataoecd/42/1/33978768.pdf OECD. (2006a). OECD in Figures. Paris: Author. OECD. (2007b). Babies and Bosses – Reconciling Work and Family Life: A Synthesis of Findings for OECD Countries. Paris: Author. OECD. (2007c). OECD Factbook 2007. Paris: Author. OECD. (2007d). OECD in Figures. Paris: Author. Pettinger, R. (1999). Parental leave in Germany. In P. Moss & F. Deven (Eds.), Parental leave: Progress or pitfall? Brussels: CBGS Publications. Secretariat of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Laender in the Federal Republic of Germany. (Secretariat) (2006). The Education System in the Federal Republic of Germany 2005 (Excerpt). Bonn: KMK. Available at www.kmk.org/dossier/preschool.pdf Sinn, H.-W. et al. (2006). Redesigning the welfare state: Germany’s current agenda for an activating social assistance. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. Stokes, B. (2003). Germany Restructures. National Journal, Dec. 13. Wingen, M. & Stutzer, E. (1994). Germany: Family policy as a cross-party social policy. In W. Dumon (Ed.), Changing family policies in the member states of the European Union. (pp. 57-86). Brussels: European Commission. UNICEF. (2000). Innocenti Report Card, 1. Florence: Innocenti Research Centre. UNICEF. (2007). Innocenti Report Card, 7. Florence: Innocenti Research Centre. |
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ContactsWashington Embassy
Ministry
German Youth Institute
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Introduction
and Overview
Highlights Government Agencies Demographic and Other Social Trends Social Protection Maternity, Paternity,Parental, and Family Leaves Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) Family and Child Allowances Child and Family Tax Benefits Housing Child Support Other Child Conditioned Income Transfers Child and Adolescent Health Youth |
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