Mini-Jobs Don't Stem Unemployment

So-called "mini-jobs" have not contributed to a much hoped for improvement in the German unemployment figures, according to an announcement made by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) on Wednesday in Berlin. The DIW's study said the majority of the 7.2 million registered mini-jobs are low-paid, parttime jobs that already existed before the category was introduced in April of 2003 -- just with a different name. New jobs have -- for the most part -- not been created as a result of the initiative, and have, therefore, not helped to bring down unemployment figures. According to the DIW, 17.4 percent of all German workers have taken a mini-job in addition to their primary job, which allows for parttime work with a tax free income of €400 ($494) per month. However, these jobs, mainly done by women, are often unstable and badly paid.