Reform in the cabinet
DGB criticizes the lack of an increase in Bafög rates
The Bafög rates were last increased for the winter semester 2022/2023. photo
© Andrea Warnecke/dpa
The German Federation of Trade Unions is not letting up in the dispute over the planned Bafög reform. The traffic light coalition wants improvements such as study start-up aid, but not higher rates.
“It is completely unacceptable that there are still no plans to increase the requirement rates,” said DGB deputy chairwoman Elke Hannack to the German Press Agency in Berlin. These would have to be raised to the subsistence level and supplemented by training costs and higher housing subsidies.
Trade unions and student representatives have long been calling for an increase in view of the increased cost of living. The reform from Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP), which is to be launched in the Federal Cabinet today, does not provide for this.
“Inflation compensation in Bafög is necessary”
“For a real structural reform, automatic inflation compensation in student loans would also be necessary in order to ensure the reliability of state student financing,” added Hannack. She welcomed other parts of the reform. From autumn onwards, the draft law provides for so-called study start aid, which is intended to support first-year students from poorer families with 1,000 euros. In addition, the duration of the Bafög payment should be extended by one semester.
With a view to the Bafög rates, which were last raised for the 2022/2023 winter semester, the DGB deputy head expressed the expectation that the Bundestag will adjust the legal discussions following the cabinet decision. Representatives of the SPD and the Greens made similar statements.