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Social welfare cuts for young unemployed ‘creates incentive’: Danish parties

Two of the three parties in Denmark’s coalition government want to reduce social welfare payments for young people not considered ready to enter the job market.

Published: 4 April 2017 11:46 CEST
Social welfare cuts for young unemployed 'creates incentive': Danish parties
A municipality job centre in Copenhagen. File photo: Thomas Lekfeldt/Scanpix

The Liberal Alliance and Conservative parties, the two smaller parties in the three-party coalition, want people between the ages of 25 and 29 to be given less in social welfare once they are declared ‘capable of activity’ (aktivitetsparat), a term used to describe somebody not currently suitable to enter the full-time job market, according to a report by newspaper Berlingske.

People falling into this category currently receive three times more in social welfare than an equivalent person considered able to work (jobparat), according to an analysis by liberal thinktank Cebos, which looked at the difference between people in the two categories living with parents or guardians and not providing for others.

A person in the able-to-work category receives 3,500 kroner ($500) per month while somebody not considered capable of working receives 11,100 kroner ($1,590), says the report.

Once not living at home, this changes to 7,200 kroner ($1,030) for the former category, while the latter remains unchanged.

According to Cepos, 43,000 people under the age of 30 are currently covered by the unemployment benefit (kontanthjælp) system, of which 61 percent are considered not ready to work full-time.

Somebody falling into the ‘capable of activity’ rather than full-time working category is considered to have social or work-related problems that prevent them from fully entering the employment or education sector, but may be able to in the longer term. The social support individuals in this category receive from their local municipalities is aimed at facilitating this.

Liberal Alliance’s employment spokesperson Laura Lindahl told news agency Ritzau that the amount of money being paid to young people in this category should be cut.

“It would create the right incentives in our system. Incentives should be to get a job or qualification. At the moment we are rewarding people for being as far away from the job market as possible,” she said.

Lindahl’s counterpart in the Conservative Party, Rasmus Jarlov, said that he was also prepared to bring down welfare payments to young people not ready to work.

“We are risking people staying away from education and the job market because it gives them a larger income in the short term,” Jarlov told Berlingske.

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How much Danish do you need to learn to get a job in Denmark?

Learning a new language like Danish is a process that can take years. So at what level can you test out your new skills and apply for a job in Danish? We spoke to a language teacher to find out.

Published: 8 May 2024 15:38 CEST
How much Danish do you need to learn to get a job in Denmark?

There are many international companies in Denmark where the workplace language is English – opening up opportunities to many nationalities who want to live and work in Denmark. However for some professions, a certain level of Danish is a requirement and for others, working in Danish opens up more doors.

“The level we say you need to get a job is to have passed the Prøve i Dansk 3 (PD3), which is the official exam by the Ministry of Education. It is equivalent to the B2 European Framework level,” Maria-Sophie Schmidt, language consultant at Studieskolen’s private Danish department told The Local.

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is an international standard for describing language ability. It uses a six-point scale: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2, where C2 is for those who are advanced and fluent in the language. It means employers and educational institutions can easily assess language abilities.

“When you pass Prøve i Dansk 3 and are B2 level, you’re not completely fluent but you can function in Danish and read newspaper articles in Danish. Usually I say B2 level is like a driver’s license we give you on your Danish. So you can drive a car but if you want to be a really good driver, you have to go practice in traffic. So after PD3 and with practice and with help perhaps, you should be able to write an application in Danish and go through an interview,” Schmidt said.

“PD3 will always help you get a job because companies appreciate you have the certificate. There’s a worry for some companies that you aren’t fluent.

“It is also helpful because Danes like to socialise in our workplaces such as at julfrokost (Christmas lunch) or fredagsbar (Friday afternoon drinks) and some are uncomfortable having to change their language to English all the time, maybe because we don’t feel we speak it well enough. So if you come as a foreigner and have a certificate of Prøve i Dansk 3, I think it’s a big advantage,” Schmidt added.

Foreign dentists and doctors need to have passed Prøve i dansk 3, as well as other professional tests before being able to start an evaluation period of working. 

However there are some sectors where passing the Danish language exam isn’t a requirement. Due to current pressure on hospital waiting times in Denmark, nurses outside of the EU are no longer asked to pass Prøve i dansk 3. Instead, they can demonstrate their Danish language ability, in line with the requirements used for nurses from EU and EEA countries. This includes a six-month probation period where Danish communication skills are assessed.

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The construction industry and engineering, as well as hospitality are other sectors where Danish language skills won’t necessarily need to be B2 level or need certification. But whether or not you require the Prøve i Dansk 3 certificate, practicing Danish is the key to gaining confidence in the Danish workplace.

“Sign up for a language course or sign up to a sports club and surround yourself with Danish language. Insist on speaking Danish and if you know anyone speaking native Danish, ask to have a coffee and practice your Danish. If you have kids and meet other parents, speak Danish, or volunteer at somewhere like a nursing home,” Schmidt suggested.

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Language schools offer a Module 6 course, called Studieprøve to get to C1 level. Here you learn to read, write and speak more academic Danish. It is a requirement for those wanting to study in Danish but you don’t need it for a job.

“At Studieskolen we offer Classes after PD3 – a conversation class at B2 and C1 level where you don’t focus on grammar and writing but on speaking relevant topics in society such as what’s going on now, newspaper articles, TV shows and practice speaking to colleagues in small talk and more complicated conversations. PD3 is a driver’s license but you often can’t join a conversation spontaneously or you may lack confidence and vocabulary, so those classes help that.”

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