GERMANY is opening its doors to more Filipino nurses and other health care professionals like physiotherapists, radiographers, occupational therapists.
This after Philippine Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and Germany’s Federal Health Secretary Dr. Karl Lauterbach signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will further facilitate the entry of Filipino healthcare professionals to Germany through private sector recruitment.
Bello and Lauterbach signed the bilateral agreement last June 3 in Berlin.
Labor Department spokesman Rolly Francia clarified, though, that this newest Philippine-Germany bilateral labor health agreement does not exempt Germany from the annual cap of 7,000 imposed on the deployment of Filipino nurses worldwide.
According to the Philippine Embassy in Berlin, the MOU will complement the ongoing project of the Philippine government to send Filipino workers to Germany through the Triple Win Project (TWP).
Under the TWP, Filipino nurses wishing to work in Germany will apply through the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). Nurses are required to undergo intensive German language courses in the Philippines before deployment.
Around 2,000 Filipinos were deployed to Germany under the Triple Win Project. There are now 6,000 Filipino nurses in Germany.
Faced with a shrinking and aging population, Germany is facing an acute shortage of nurses who will work in hospitals and nursing homes for the elderly. However, the pandemic further exacerbated this problem. According to the German Hospital Association, there were 14,000 positions vacant for registered nursing staff in clinics and 8,000 in intensive care units in 2021. The German Embassy in Manila said demand estimates would reach 150,000 -200,000 professional nurses over the next 10 years.
Starting salaries of trainee nurses range from 1,040-1,200 euros (P57,200-P66,000) per month, while fully qualified nurses’ starting salary is 2,500 euros (P137,500) per month.
Meanwhile, another agreement was signed during Bello’s visit that would pave the way for the entry of Filipino skilled workers from other sectors into Germany.
Initially, filipino electronics and electrical mechanics, plumbers, pipe fitters, cooks, waiters and hotel receptionists will be allowed to work in Germany, too.
The agreement was contained in the Letter of Intent between the Philippines and Germany. Overseas Workers Welfare Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac, on behalf of POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia who was on official leave at that time; and Federal Employment Agency of the Federal Republic of Germany, together with Mr. Alexander Wilhelm, Director of International Cooperation of Germany’s Federal Employment Agency, signed the LOI.
“The two instruments exhibit both countries’ commitment to expand cooperation in the area of recruitment, deployment and employment of Filipino professionals and skilled workers to Germany, and their adherence to the principles of fair and orderly migration,” the Philippine Embassy said in a statement.
Germany needs an estimated 400,000 new workers from various professions and skills, every year.