Recently, the “Law on structural development of long-term care insurance" (PfWG) has come into effect. This law also introduced the act concerning home care, effective from 1 July 2008. It gives employees the opportunity to be temporarily released from work and/or to work part-time in order to take care of relatives without actually putting their jobs at risk. [more]

The Federal Commissioner for the Needs of Persons with Disabilities, Karin Evers-Meyer (Social Democrats), has recently reacted to public demands to exclude vocational rehabilitation from the Federal Employment Agency’s responsibilities. [more]

At each fair, joint booths have proven to be profitable in many ways. In order to present a larger group of exhibitors in an appealing and uniformly designed environment, a joint appearance is an appropriate tool. Organisations with similar offers and services have already benefited from jointly used special areas at the Workshop Fair in Nuremberg during the past years. [more]

Many (potential) exhibitors of the workshop fair in Nuremberg have recently received a letter from “Expo-Guide”. So did BAG WfbM. The sender (a company established in Mexico) asks to update the corresponding data in the existing list of exhibitors with the following reference: “Update your data (entry under WERKSTAETTEN-MESSE)”. According to the sender, this update is necessary in order to allow for smooth contacts with your company and to make sure that only correct data will be published. [more]

The 24th edition of the workshops fair “Werkstätten:Messe 2009” will be held in Nuremberg from 19th to 22nd March. Many exhibitors have already registered to present products and services of German workshops. Institutions and organisations from several European countries are equally present. [more]

Employment and Social Affairs issues were discussed in council on 2nd October 2008 under the presidency of Xavier Bertrand, French Minister of Employment, Social Relations, Family and Solidarity. [more]

2,500 visitors had been expected – as many people came from all over Germany and other European Countries to the Federal Congress at the AWD Dome in Bremen. The 11th Federal Congress was the largest congress in the history of BAG WfbM. [more]

According to the reports of the Federal Employment Agency, 3,195,740 people were unemployed in August 2008. Among them, 154,266 persons with severe disabilities were registered as unemployed. [more]

From 1 – 4 September 2008, the ninth the federal football championships for people working in workshops for adapted work will take place in Duisburg. New is the official title: "German Football Championships of Workshops for Adapted Work". [more]

The European congress of workshops for adapted work, the “Werkstätten:Tag 2008”, is nearly booked out: To this day, more than 2.200 participants have already registered for the three day congress, taking place form 24 – 26 September 2008 in Bremen. [more]

The German Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has launched the new internet site www.csr-in-deutschland.de. The site aims to make the concept of social responsibility of companies (Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR) known. [more]

From 24 – 26 September 2008, the Werkstätten:Tag 2008, the Federal Congress of Workshops for Adapted Work, will be held in Bremen. It will be the largest Werkstätten:Tag of all times. More than 100 speeches, lectures and working groups will be held over three days, more than 2.200 participants are already registered. Federal President Horst Köhler has taken over the patronage, the Federal Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, Olaf Scholz, will address the participants. Mechtild Rothe, Vice-President of the European Parliament, will attend. [more]

Workshop employees photographed wearing work clothes of professions, which are not usually associated with disability. This idea developed into the advertising campaign “unmöglich – denkst du” (“you think it is impossible"), that was recently launched by BAG WfbM. The campaign aims to present workshop employees to the general public as proud, self-confident and authentic. The goal is, to improve the image of persons in workshops for adapted work. In particular, companies and firms shall be won for cooperation with workshops. [more]

At a conference of the German Federation of Industries (BDI) and the Berlin Round Table on EU State Aid Law in Berlin, European Commissioner for Competition Policy Neelie Kroes presented the EU Commission’s new action plan on state aid. In this context, she declared: “I say that we have to target and control state aid." [more]

Persons with disabilities do not benefit to the same extent from positive labour market developments as persons without disabilities. This fact was at the centre of an expert talk between Anita Knochner, Bavarian State Commissioner for the Needs of Persons with Disabilities, Rainer Bomba, head of Bavaria’s regional directorate of the Federal Employment Agency (BA) and Dr. Franz Prast, member of the executive board of the same directorate. [more]