Diana Farrell's Business Europe column, 'Can Germany benefit from Offshoring?' (August 23) raises some good points, but fails to sufficiently address the argument in a wider context: that low value-added jobs are simply incompatible with a high-wage country such as Germany. Instead of looking at new ways to spark job creation, Germany would benefit most from concentrating on growth and productivity, as this will drive the creation of high-value-adding jobs.
The over-regulated and unionized state of Germany is only part of the problem. Germany as a whole needs to realize that high growth and productivity are the main drivers for higher wages and jobs, but achieving this will require a massive shift in thinking. Such a societal turn-around however, cannot be achieved quickly; it's a long-term investment that needs measures such as education and foreign investment. Signs of this turn-around are already appearing. Bavaria, for instance, has clearly been successful in the last 30 years in building a highly productive and expansive growth environment. General Electric has just recently established a new research center near Munich, which created 200 new, highly-qualified research positions. Many more jobs have been created as a result of this move at other universities and suppliers.
The low-value-adding jobs will go sooner or later, but this is not a bad thing. German should look to retain and build on the high-value-adding jobs instead, which necessitates a collaborative effort between Germany's politicians, industry, academia and unions to create the structural prerequisites that will enable the growth of high value jobs.
Max Sembach, PA Consulting Group, Frankfurt
