The socialist welfare state cannot be extended to foreigners or it would run out of € and the temp agencies take no responsibility.
This should have broad political appeal for the obvious reasons.
I've seen this happen a lot. Guy sells everything he has to move family to a new country for a new dream job, then spending big money on renting a nice new house for his family, buying a new car and tons of new stuff for the house and the kids, and a few weeks/months down the line he doesn't pass probation or the company changes course and lays him off, or he realizes the job or city is not what he thought and wishes to leave. And since he hasn't been contributing to the social services for long enough he's not entitled to any welfare/assistance from the state. It happens more often than you think.
The good thing is that in EU your residence permit is not tied to an employer so if you get let go, you can still stay and find another job with relative ease, but no country or company that I'm aware of here pays for your relocation if things don't work out for you. That's why having some savings and living below your means for a while is of major importance when you move cities/countries.
Singapore for certain low paid jobs.
Don't get me wrong. The case of working only 2 days after the move is an absolute nightmare. But it is the exception that needs to be dealt with, not the reason for a rule that is hard to enforce and easy to fraud.
But people who officially work abroad... yeah, not the best conditions for many. As usual, people think grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
Here's what's odd about the USA. I know people from India and Canada, who were here and their visa expired, and they couldn't get a job, so they have to leave.
I also know people from Mexico, who are here illegally/undocumented/whatever, and they don't leave. They stay for years.
Because you don't already have an expired visa, you can file taxes (and get a refund!), open a bank account, get a driver's license, etc. But if you were in the process of coming here legally, they have your number and you're done.
I mean, they have to leave just like the first example. But they don't.
Zero fucking sense.
"Eastern European" typically means EU-member states, with Ukraine being the exception even before the war (within reasonable distance, populous enough for recruiters to go to). EU-citizens don't need a residency permit, and they have access to the social system in Germany. They're often not informed about their rights and that should be improved, but "they end up on the streets because no passport" sounds like something that's not true for a significant number.
1. Don't speak any language other than your own, especially not the one spoken in the country you are planning to work in.
2. Get your work and accommodation organized by the same company or person, trust him when he says that you need to pay X amount upfront for the accommodation, but you will get it back eventually.
3. Give your passport to the organizing company or person, so you won't accidentally lose it (if you have a passport at all - moving within the EU does not require one).
4. Do not request a contract, or sign it without understanding what is in it (because it is not in a language you understand).
5. Be in such a desperate financial situation that you cannot just travel anytime you want, let alone find another accommodation.
6. Even if the circumstances are troubling (living in a small apartment with 10 other people, working and not being paid after a month etc), do not go to the police, partly because you don't speak the language, partly because you don't know what rights you have, partly because they can kick you out of your job and accommodation if you complain.
7. For younger girls the steps are a bit different, and much more evil. Let's not get into that.
In a way, the EU being a single job market makes these kinds of things even easier - no real control of who enters a country, who lives where etc. In theory, you must register your change of address, social security etc. In practice, the system is easy to exploit.
Whether Turkey or Russia count as “Eastern Europe” is I suppose debatable, but the other examples are unambiguous.
The "employer provides accommodation" is common in farming (seasonal work) and some factories, e.g. industrial slaughterhouses are well known for that kind of setup, and for bad conditions.
This is with a huge asterisk. Workers (EU or otherwise) moving to Germany or any other country for that matter, have access to welfare only once they've contributed enough to the system, not right away.
Being highly vulnerable, having small kids or health issues may entitle you to some benefits right away, but welfare/unemployment benefits have a mandatory period of contributions to the system before you can claim them.
Sure, there are system savvy people, locals and immigrants alike, that have found loopholes and ways to game the system, turning welfare into a taxpayer-funded lifestyle, which is the topic of many heated political debates on the future of the socialist welfare safety system, as too many people rely on it and not enough contribute.
German industries in low margin businesses (meat, agriculture, harvesting, construction work, hospitality, etc.) are dependent on exploiting low wage migrant labor, mostly form Eastern Europe (why do you think food prices are so low in Germany, and why do you think the country has the most liberal open borders migration policy in Europe?).
The German government and state institutions turn a blind eye to migrant exploitation, because otherwise supermarket prices would explode and some German exports would no longer be competitive on price. For example, when you see super cheap bananas or whatever food in the supermarkets, that have to be grown, harvested and shipped and wages paid along the supply chain, how do you think such low prices are possible? Easy, people and the environment are usually exploited along the way, as supermarket chains know consumers are very price sensitive so the entire industry price-competes themselves downward into oblivion thriving on exploitation. To be clear, this isn't an isolated issue to Germany alone, but applies to many wealthy countries.
>Please provide sources for your claims, otherwise it's hard to take them serious.
As this exploitation has been happening for a while, there are countless stories and articles about this in German media, especially DW and other NGOs. They're so well documented, they're impossible to miss, so I'm a bit surprised by your skepticism, but here you go:
Romanian workers reveal dire conditions at slaughterhouses [1]
A story about seasonal workers, exploitation and vulnerability [2]
Precarious Posted Migration: The Case of Romanian Construction and Meat-Industry Workers in Germany [3]
[1] https://www.dw.com/en/germany-meat-industry-conditions/a-540...
[2] https://www.suedwind.at/fileadmin/user_upload/suedwind/50_Ha...
[3] http://www.ceemr.uw.edu.pl/sites/default/files/Voivozeanu_Pr...