Ver.di has criticised the liberal FDP health minister for using the existence of the minimum wage in the social care sector to justify ending the requirement on social care institutions to pay locally recognised pay rates. This could mean, for example, the going rate in one are of €14.95 an hour being reduced to the minimum rate (in the west) of €8.75. The minister argues that it is a bureaucratic burden to ascertain the local going rate. Ver.di has argued that the sector should apply the public sector rate but this was rejected by private employers. Read more at > ver.di (DE)