State election in Rhineland-Palatinate: This is what the Greens say about craft policy

Ahead of the state elections in Rhineland-Palatinate, the parliamentary groups represented in the state parliament are answering questions on issues related to skilled trades policy. Here you will find the answers from Alliance 90/The Greens.

State elections will be held in Rhineland-Palatinate on March 22, 2026. In the run-up to the election, the trade associations have published their demands. In them, they outline the framework conditions necessary to secure the future viability of the trades in the state. We asked the Green Party – as well as the other parliamentary groups represented in the state parliament – ​​how they feel about these demands. Demands of the skilled trades regarding the state elections They stand and what their positions are.

➡️ You can find the positions of the other factions here. via this link

The Green Party's lead candidate for the state election in Rhineland-Palatinate on March 22nd is Katrin EderSince December 2021, she has been the Minister for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy and Mobility of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. 

DHB: How do you intend to improve the framework conditions for the skilled trades – what will you, as the future state government, do to ensure that an "industrial electricity tariff" also reaches the skilled trades?
Greens: We Greens want to create conditions that offer skilled trades planning security, fair competition, and economic prospects. This includes ensuring that affordable electricity from renewable energy sources also reaches small and medium-sized enterprises. Relief from electricity prices must not be limited to energy-intensive industries.

Therefore, we advocate for reducing taxes and levies on electricity and for models that allow businesses to directly benefit from regionally generated renewable electricity. At the same time, we actively support green craft businesses on their path to climate neutrality. We are expanding the existing "EffCheck" into a "Climate Check for SMEs and Craft Businesses." This offers practical advice with concrete, implementable suggestions for energy efficiency, renewable energies, and climate-friendly production.

We aim to counteract the current skilled worker shortage in the trades with early career guidance and support measures such as daily support and language courses during apprenticeships. We also support attractive retraining and qualification programs. To close the skills gap and reduce financial barriers, we plan to introduce a free master craftsman's certificate. With a succession planning center, we want to better connect business owners and successors and facilitate successful business succession.

DHB: How do you intend to reduce bureaucracy?
Greens: We Greens want to reduce unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) without lowering necessary environmental, social, and consumer protection standards. Together with practitioners from businesses, government, and chambers of commerce, we are reviewing regulations for their practicality. New and existing regulations under state jurisdiction will be subjected to a practical test to ensure they are feasible for implementation and do not create unintended additional burdens. We want to simplify, consolidate, and digitize procedures instead of creating ever more requirements for proof and documentation.

DHB: How will the Greens advance the education initiative?
Greens: We Greens want to tangibly improve learning in our schools. We are focusing on socially mixed classes and more integrated comprehensive schools to structurally counteract the downward spiral in disadvantaged areas. We are streamlining curricula, focusing on future-relevant skills, and giving teachers more freedom for project-based learning, individualization, and dedicated learning time.

Instead of solely focusing on grades, we advocate a modern feedback culture with individualized feedback that makes learning progress visible and thus strengthens motivation. We Greens want to further embed career guidance early, continuously, and practically, with practical experience days, collaborations with businesses, and strong involvement in skilled trades, nursing, and climate-related professions. We strengthen school social work and career counseling so that all young people develop realistic perspectives and transitions to vocational training or university studies are well supported.

DHB: How do you intend to strengthen the – also societal – equality of dual vocational training and university studies in the future?
Greens: We, the Greens in Rhineland-Palatinate, are specifically promoting dual vocational training and emphasizing that vocational and academic education are of equal value. The state is already strengthening vocational schools and inter-company training centers, and creating modern training frameworks that are closely coordinated with businesses and chambers of commerce.

We promote dual vocational training with housing offers, discounted public transport tickets, and modern vocational training centers, and develop models such as dual upper secondary education and tri-partite study programs that systematically combine vocational training and university studies. Furthermore, we advocate for master craftsman training to be free of charge, like an initial university degree, and for vocational qualifications to be given the same status as academic degrees within the qualifications framework.

DHB: How do you intend to boost housing construction and/or modernize the infrastructure?
Greens: To boost housing construction, building costs must decrease. To achieve this, we intend to fundamentally revise the state building code without neglecting climate and nature conservation. We will review luxury standards that unnecessarily increase construction costs. At the same time, we want to further improve the conditions for building within existing structures.

DHB: And how will you create investment opportunities for municipalities?
Greens: Our municipalities will receive a total of four billion euros in financial leeway over the next twelve years from special federal funds and additional state funding. Now it is crucial that these funds are used strategically for climate protection and local social infrastructure.

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