A German state agency has said that it will likely soon be providing over 400,000 more Ukrainian migrants with unemployment benefits over the next few weeks.
A total of around 410,000 migrants ostensibly from Ukraine will soon be on the German dole, with hundreds of thousands more on top of that expected to end up receiving unemployment benefit in the central European state before the end of the year.
This is the assessment of Germany’s Federal Employment Agency, which is already reportedly giving handouts to millions of migrants under the so-called “Hartz IV” scheme.
According to a report by Die Welt, hundreds of thousands of people claiming to be refugees from Ukraine will sign on to the German dole over the coming number of weeks, though the agency also reportedly emphasises that these numbers can fluctuate significantly over time.
With that being said, the employment agency believes that it will be giving handouts to just under 800,000 migrants by the end of 2022.
“746,000 Ukrainian employable beneficiaries are expected in the job centres by the end of the year,” a paper on the crisis penned by the agency and seen by Die Welt reportedly reads.
The publication goes on to note that should this pile on to the German social welfare system occur, it would spike Germany’s unemployment rates by over 50 per cent, with around 47 per cent of Germany’s unemployed as of December having already been from a “migrant background”.
While this hike seems significant, Die Welt notes that Germany is already giving out millions of partial dole handouts to migrants under the “Hartz IV” social welfare system.
Just shy of two million migrants were receiving these partial benefits as of December last year, representing a total of around 56 per cent of the scheme’s total recipients, while around 60 per cent of the scheme’s recipients are thought to be of a “migrant background”.
What’s more, while on paper the hundreds of thousands of new arrivals looking to sign on for German welfare benefits are refugees fleeing from Ukraine, other reports from across Europe seem to suggest at least some of those arriving into EU nations are not Ukrainian at all.
According to claims made by a number of politicians and backed up by a major publication in the country, around one-third of Ukraine war refugees arriving in France are actually not from the war-torn country, with some claiming that African migrants are exploiting the conflict to enter Europe.
The belief that non-Ukrainian migrants could be sneaking into Europe using routes designed for refugees has also become more and more widespread in Ireland, with one video going viral of citizen journalist Philip Dwyer quizzing a number of migrants claiming to be from Ukraine who had just arrived on the island.
“We’re just nationals of Ukraine,” said one man, describing the group’s situation. “By origin, we are from… Kashmir.”
Many in the all-male group also claimed to be over the age of 60 — the age at which Ukrainian men cease to be eligible for the country’s general draft — though Dwyer himself seemed to be sceptical of this.
“You’re very young looking for your age, if you don’t mind me saying so,” Dwyer said in response to the claim. “This man here looks very young for 60.”
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