Purpose:
Erlangen shows that labour markets can open up to refugees under favourable circumstances
Process:
With a population of 100 000, the City of Erlangen is home to the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (35,000 students) and the numerous branch offices of Siemens AG (25 000 employees). Since January 2015 the city of Erlangen and Siemens have been working hand in hand to provide 10 internships for skilled asylum seekers at Siemens.
The aim is to bring about a win-win-win situation, first for asylum seekers who would receive work-place orientation and self-check their professional capacities, then for firm employees who would reflect on their bias against refugees and migrants, and finally for the company itself which could make use of the potential of qualified asylum seekers. Although the outcome is not yet known, Siemens has recently expanded the programme to other sites in Germany. The company is currently offering internships for 100 refugees and has set up four six-month training programs for young refugees including German language courses, an introduction to German culture and customs, as well as vocational preparation.
The Erlangen-Siemens internship programme targets qualified asylum seekers with completed education and working knowledge of German.
Siemens is still running a programme in 2023.
Key reference documents: more information
