There is great hope for a better future after the fall of the Assad regime. He hopes that “doctors, pharmacists and engineers” will return to Syria. This is what a young man said in a television interview. In Germany, there are (controversial) calls for refugees to return to Syria quickly. A spokesperson for the human rights organization Pro Asyl called this “irresponsible” and “unrealistic” in view of the situation on the ground. In an interview with NDR, he criticized the debate as “political propaganda … for election campaign purposes”.
The return would leave gaps
What consequences could the return of many of the 975,000 Syrians currently living in Germany have? One of the many aspects is the labor market. If workers from the healthcare sector and the economy actually leave Germany, this would have noticeable consequences. This primarily affects the healthcare sector. Around 28,000 Syrians work there and in the social sector alone – including 5,758 doctors at the end of last year, around 5,000 of them in hospitals. “Germany needs skilled workers from abroad to keep important infrastructure areas such as nursing and healthcare functioning”: A spokesperson for the Central Association of Medical Specialists (SpiFa) told the news magazine “Spiegel”.
Many work in healthcare and logistics
In total, around 222,610 Syrians, around one in two, have a job and pay social security contributions. According to statistics from the Federal Employment Agency, this also applies to 15 percent of women. There are also 65,000 mini-jobs. Around 32,000 Syrians are employed in trade, which also includes car repair shops. 28,000 Syrian women – the same number as in healthcare and social services – have a job in the logistics sector. This includes the transportation of goods. 1400 Syrians are on the payroll of Deutsche Bahn. The others attend schools and universities or care for relatives. Around 250,000 employable Syrians are currently receiving social benefits.
Syrians are well qualified
The Syrians who came to Germany between 2015 and 2017 brought good qualifications with them. Almost half of them had completed secondary school or had a university degree. Among those who came later, it was still more than a third.
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