The industrial union Bauen-Agrar-Umwelt (IG BAU) warns of a massive increase in the housing shortage. In Germany, well over 700,000 apartments were missing by the end of the year, said chairman Robert Feiger at the IG-BAU trade union conference in Kassel. It was based on calculations by the Pestel Institute in Hanover.

There is a particular lack of affordable housing and social housing. "This year we will reach a new trough in social housing. And at the same time there will be a significant high in immigration."

In any case, the federal government must stick to its goal of building 400,000 apartments a year, 100,000 of them social housing. In order to promote 100,000 social housing units per year, the federal and state governments would have to provide at least 12.5 billion euros, Feiger demanded. In addition, everything must now be done to keep construction going during the crisis. Construction must be promoted more intensively and made significantly easier in terms of building law.

IG BAU warns of an increase in poverty

Against the background of rising energy prices, Feiger warned of an increase in poverty. According to calculations by the Pestel Institute, the number of people at risk of poverty in Germany is around 13 million, including around 3.6 million seniors. Above all, they are affected by the drastic increases in cold rent.

"Hundreds of thousands will slide into poverty if the state doesn't provide targeted help - especially people with low incomes," Feiger warned. Among the employees, it will primarily affect people who work for low wages, but also skilled workers. Feiger therefore called for emergency aid of 500 euros for all employees, recipients of basic security, pensioners, trainees and students and 100 euros for each child.

In this time of crisis, however, it is also important that negotiated or legally stipulated minimum wages are also paid, emphasized the IG-BAU national chairman against the background that the statutory minimum wage will increase to twelve euros on October 1st. The union is therefore calling for increased minimum wage controls and a doubling of the number of inspectors to 16,000.